


Caught off Guard

by graywoman



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alex and Lena are BFFs, F/F, I watched DC's Legends of Tomorrow to try to get Sara Lance right in this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-17
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-09 03:23:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 32,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8873854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/graywoman/pseuds/graywoman
Summary: Season 2 rewrite picking up at the end of 2x08 (Medusa) right after Lillian Luthor's arrest. Sara's storyline officially picks up in Chapter 8.





	1. Chapter 1

_“Listen Kara, you can write whatever sounds good. But the truth is, as a daughter, I always seemed to fall short. We could never agree on anything.”_

Of all the ways their relationship could have come to an end, how shocking was it really that it would include one of them in handcuffs?

Their family did have a history of it, anyways.

With the excitement dying down, Lena Luthor became more aware of the chill in the night. She was leaning back against one of the empty police cars as the officers continued to investigate the scene. Her mother had already been driven to the station to be booked and Lena would soon be following to go over in greater detail what had conspired that night with the detectives. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be as simple as a statement from a witness. L-Corp would once again be dragged through another scandal.

The CEO sighed as she went through a mental list of everything she would need to get done in the next 24 hours. If Lex was upset at her before, how would he take the fact that she - not one of the Supers - was the direct cause of their mothers sudden incarceration?

And there certainly would be no coming back from this. But Lena had made her peace with it the second she made her decision.

_“Be your own hero.”_

Heroic wasn’t a word she would use to describe herself. The real hero was standing several yards in front of her, flashing police car lights making everything about her exceptionally striking in the moment. She was in discussion with her partner in arms, the “gentleman” who only a while ago looked everything like the aliens imagined in comics before those like Superman and Supergirl made their presence known.

Lena didn’t know how long she was staring before that attention was returned back. Her breath caught in her throat as Supergirl smiled, making her way over.

“I have to say Miss Luthor, you continue to surprise me. Though once again at a great risk.” Supergirl looked at her pointedly as she came to stand next to her, hands on her hips. “Why didn’t you agree to help me when I came to you?” she asked in a more gentle tone filled with curiosity.

Lena shrugged as she looked down at the ground in front of her. “I suppose I just had to see it for myself,” she said, and after a pause, “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you sooner.”

“No. Learning the worst about your family, it’s never easy.” Supergirl’s face dropped at the thought. She leaned against the car next to Lena, turning her head to the side to keep looking at the CEO. “When it mattered, you helped us when no one else could. Thank you.”

Lena shook her head at the thought.

“You didn’t know I made the virus inert.” The brunette stood up straight off the car and turned to the Super who was following her movement. Lena had essentially switched their previous position, noticing they were closer then she had realized. “You could have stopped me in less than a heartbeat - before I even turned that key. Why didn’t you?”

Supergirl crossed her arms and stared out at a point past Lena’s shoulder.

“Maybe… I had to see it to believe it too.” Supergirl’s eye found Lena’s and she gave her an easy smile. “And I was right. You are _too good_ and _too smart_ for that life and tonight, Miss Luthor, you were the hero.”

A laugh was accompanied by tears that suddenly filled Lena’s eyes. Seeing the sudden look of panic on Supergirl’s was new. There was something strangely familiar in that moment.

Lena took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she stared up at the night sky to gather her emotions.

She would not cry.

“Thank you for saying that. But if it’s all the same to you,” Lena started, trying to grab some semblance of confidence as she laid a hand on one of Supergirl's bicep, “You are still the hero in my eyes.” And with that, she took a half step closer and laid a quick kiss on the Super’s cheek.

Leaning back and putting her hands into her pockets, it was like a fog she didn’t even know was surrounding her lifted as she stared at the blonde. Because if Supergirl had a panicked look before that brought familiarity from Lena’s mind, it had since doubled over.

“I, um… well that’s very kind, uhhh…” Queue weak giggle, avoidance of eye contact, hand twitching to reach up only to be brought back down.

Suddenly, it was clear as day.

* * *

" _You know, you look beautiful, with the weight of all these worlds on your shoulder_."

Kara sighed as she turned over from her stomach to her back, kicking at her blanket and pounding at her pillow before laying down again. Dawn was about to break and she hadn't been able to fall asleep all night.

Not that she needed much sleep in general. She would just prefer it to going over the last day again.

Better than questioning herself for the umpteenth time that night.

" _But if it's all the same to you, you are still the hero in my eyes_."

If Mon-El was on her mind, it was only secondary to Lena Luthor. And for only for a fraction of the time.

With a huff, Kara threw the blanket off herself and hopped out of the bed. She made a beeline for the freezer and thanked Rao there was plenty of ice cream left from their interrupted Thanksgiving dinner. Grabbing a spoon, Kara pulled off the lid and dug in as she headed to the couch.

Again her thoughts drifted to the conversation between a certain CEO and herself from just a few hours prior. 

Absentmindedly, she ran her fingers across the cheek that had felt Lena's lips. If she thought about it too much, she could feel it as if it had just happened.

If kissing could be a superpower, and the only test sample she had was on the cheek-

"Oooh golly." Kara's hand froze mid scoop.

She was simply caught off guard with how quickly Lena had become such a significant part of her life, she thought.

And, as an afterthought, how awesome her lips were.

" _Jess, will you make a note downstairs that Kara Danvers is to be shown in right away whenever possible_?"

A smile slowly appeared at the memory.

Sure, it only served Lena well to be kind to Kara Danvers. Being in the process of rebranding her company, she needed all the good press she could get and Kara was her in with the city's most popular magazine. And of course, she also happened to "know" Supergirl. Lena had already come to her once to get in touch with her alter ego.

But in every way Lena had presented herself, it always felt genuine. Whether it was to Supergirl or to Kara.

 _Kara_.

"Shoot," she mumbled around a mouthful of ice cream.

Having the luxury of being around plenty of highly intelligent people, Lena Luthor definitely made the top of the list. She would put two and two together. "Interviewing" her on the day Supergirl warned her about her mother, the day Lena did in fact come to learn her mother was the head of Cadmus? She would surely realize Kara was using her status as a reporter to snoop into her private life with a nonexistent story.

All of her lighter thoughts about the CEO were replaced with nerves. She would have to speak with her; the sooner the better.

Would it be too weird if she showed up unannounced at her house? Kara could easily get her address from the DEO. Lena had showed up at her apartment when she needed to talk to Supergirl. And it wasn't like _she_ had been given Kara's address.

No, no, she would just see her at the office. Assuming her access hadn't been revoked.

" _Rao_."

* * *

 "Kara... Kara... _Kara_?"

"Wha-" Kara jerked awake, blinking rapidly. Her apartment was now brightly lit by the sun.

"Why aren't you sleeping in your bed? Kara, you got ice cream on your couch!" Her sister looked at her in disbelief as she picked up the leaking carton of liquefied ice cream from Kara's lap and carried it over to the kitchen.

"Oops," Kara groaned as she sat up and noticed the ice cream had melted, running down the side of her thigh and dripping down on the couch. "What time is it?"

Alex ran a rag under some water before quickly walking back to the living room. "It's nearly 10. Good thing for you it's Saturday." Kara stood up and reached for the rag but Alex simply rolled her eyes and pushed her towards her bedroom. "Change, I got this," she told her still half-asleep alien sister before she started cleaning up the couch.

"Thanks," Kara yawned. Walking into her bedroom, she lazily took off her pajama bottoms and used them to wipe at her thigh before tossing them in the hamper. After putting on a clean pair of sweatpants, she rejoined Alex in the living room. "I can't believe I did that."

"Yeah, I've never seen you leave your food unfinished." Alex smirked as she playfully pretended to feel Kara's forehead with the back of her hand. "Feeling okay sis?"

"Hardy har har." Kara pouted as she sat down on the kitchen island. It was then she noticed the pink pastry box that was waiting for her along with two coffees. Not being bothered to put her glasses back on, a quick x-ray revealed a very sweet treat. "Crullers? Oh Alex, whatever could you want?" Not waiting for an invitation, she quickly opened the box and dug in.

"Pfff, do I need a reason to bring my sister some breakfast?"

"Uh shoppose naht," Kara said around a big bite. Clearing her throat, "Last night went pretty well, all things considered."

"Yes." A beat. A bright smile adorned her older sister's face. "Really well."

Taking a smaller bite so she could actually talk without spitting at her sister, Kara asked, "What's up?"

"Well, in the middle of all the chaos, mom kind of confronted me." Alex half shrugged. "I came clean... about me..."

Jumping up excitedly, Kara ran around the kitchen island and threw her hands around Alex in a big hug. "I don't even need to ask what Eliza said. I'm _so_ happy for you Alex."

"Thanks Kara."

"No wonder you're in such a good mood." Kara wanted to keep the conversation solely on her sister. She was making a concentrated effort, like she had told Alex she would. Even if a certain Luthor was on her mind, that could wait. "But seriously, I'm proud of you."

Kara motioned towards the couches so they grabbed their stuff and shuffled over to the living room.

Alex then spoke up, albeit more tentatively, as she put the pastry box down on the table. "There's, uh, something else."

Of course there was. Alex was suspiciously happy.

"Alex. What's going on with you?" Kara eyed her as she plopped down on one end of the couch.

Her older sister took the opportunity to break off a bite of one of the donuts and chewed it thoughtfully.

" _Alex_."

Another great opportunity for Alex to take an sip of her coffee.

Until, finally, "Maggie came over last night."


	2. Chapter 2

It had been a strange 24 hours for Supergirl.

The morning after the Medusa incident (after she had caught up with her sister), Kara had returned from the grocery store to find Barry Allen waiting in her apartment. It turned out that he and his friend Cisco, in an attempt to reach Kara, were the cause of the strange portal that had been appearing.

Barry needed Supergirl's help on his Earth and after a quick call to Alex to let her know what was going on, Kara was more than happy to oblige.

However, now that they had entered their second day of the fight against the dominators, Supergirl was getting a bit antsy.

"And, uh, the new president called, which would be cool under different circumstances, but she wants to meet with us," Barry explained to the group. It included himself and Supergirl as well as Dig, Sara, Oliver, Ray, and Professor Stein - some of the many heroes that made up their team.

"Let's bring Ray and Sara as backup," Oliver suggested.

Supergirl perked up at the chance to help. "What about me? I can do backup." Admittedly, Kara wasn't used to such a large team effort with several moving parts. And it was hard sitting around doing nothing while waiting for your number to be called.

Instead of giving her an answer, Oliver asked if they could talk, motioning his head to the side.

Kara glanced up at Barry to see if he knew what was going on, but he merely shrugged and answered that he didn't. Feeling a bit confused, Kara followed The Arrow away from the rest of the group.

"I would like to minimize your involvement in this."

"Why? Because I'm an alien? I also happen to be your biggest weapon," Kara argued, trying (and not quite achieving) to keep the anger out of her voice.

"You are an unknown quantity, and this is not personal."

"Except that's exactly how this feels."

She _really_ wasn't used to this.

"Kara, when I started living this life, it was just me. I was going up against human threats... That I could handle. Then it was meta-humans, and I can handle that. Now I learn that there are multiple Earths, and I was brainwashed aboard an alien spacecraft-"

"I am sure that was unnerving, but I don't-"

"I don't get unnerved." He seemed a _bit_ unnerved, Kara thought, as he spoke. "But when I go up against something new, I push back. Right or wrong, it is who I am, and it is what I do, so I'm asking for a little bit of space because I have to draw the line somewhere. I need to claw back a sense of normalcy. Please stay here." And with that, Oliver walked away.

Watching his retreating form for a few moments, Kara huffed as she turned around and walked away in the opposite direction. She didn't stop until she made it out through the back doors of the hanger they were using as headquarters.

She wished she could talk to Alex. Her sister was probably very worried about her and Kara could only hope nothing serious was happening in her absence.

Lena Luthor suddenly came to the forefront of her mind as well, but that was nothing new. The CEO had been springing up in her mind frequently since the Medusa incident two days prior.

"You alright over there?" Sara Lance was ever so casually leaning against the the frame of the hanger door.

"I... you know... if... uggh!" Throwing up her arms in defeat, Kara resumed her pacing. "Is there any old, broken cars around? One no one would mind if I let out some aggression on?"

"Well, we could probably find you something. But for the future, Supergirl, I would recommend a more pleasurable way to let out your aggression." What could only be described as the most suggestive smirk Kara had ever seen in her life graced the other girl's face.

That certainly made Supergirl pause, her cheeks turning pink.

Leaning off the doorway, White Canary made her way closer to the upset alien.

"I get that for you it doesn't matter if this is your world or not, you want to do whatever it takes to save it. But Oliver see's everything he has ever cared about on the line. It's no consolation, but he really is trying to do the right thing."

The other woman was right. Kara's family and friends were all safe. Whatever happened on this planet, it wouldn't effect her anywhere near as much as the others. Nodding her head, Kara tried to let go of any anger she held.

"Hey, do you want to get a drink when this is all over?"

If dancing back and forth between flirting and talking sense was an Olympic sport, Sara Lance would have a gold medal, Kara thought.

"I think you wanna meet my sister," Kara responded with a laugh.

"Oh? Is this sister single?"

"Boy, I hope so." Kara's mouth snapped shut. She shouldn't have said anything. Especially not if Alex was happy, which yesterday morning showed Kara she _was_.

Sara gave her an inquisitive look, head tilted to the side. "Spill Super, what's bothering you?

Well, if Kara couldn't take part in saving the world, why not take part in some girl talk? Besides, it would hardly get back to Alex over on Earth 38.

"It's just, there's this girl..."

"There usually is, in my experience." There was that smirk again.

" _Anyways_ , let's just say I'm not her biggest fan."

"Why's that?" Sara crossed her arms as she looked up at the other girl.

"I could probably use my hands to count all the times I've seen my sister cry, okay? And Alex hasn't had the easiest life to begin."

"Okay?"

"So making my sister cry is probably the quickest way to make me not like you," Kara stated matter-of-factly as she rubbed her temple.

"Fair enough." Sara held out her hands. "So, what did this girl do that was so bad?"

"Well, Maggie, she's a cop. And Alex and her met over a case we were working on. They started hanging out, got close, and Alex realized she liked her. My sister also happened to be very much in the closet at the time," Kara explained. The last thing she wanted to do was dump on the first girl Alex liked. But Kara did want her older sister to be more cautious. "So Maggie encouraged her to come out, that she deserved to be happy. But when Alex did come out, apparently the fact that she was 'fresh off the boat' - which, what does that even mean? - was a no-go for Maggie."

Sara rubbed that back of her neck as she grimaced. "That's tough."

"I don't know, I mean, maybe I'm wrong." Kara frowned. "Once, I was on this horrible date. The guy was literally on his phone the whole night and the date ended with him picking up the waitress. And it felt horrible, but I'd never met this guy before so it's not like he owed me a whole lot. When I see how that happened with Maggie; I mean, this is someone who was supposed to be Alex's friend before anything else, you know?"

"Don't think about it too much." Sara waved her off. "You're sister just came out? Believe me, she's got a long road ahead of her. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, but she'll be fine."

Kara took this information in, nodding her head. "So, when did you realize you were gay?"

The shorter woman shrugged a shoulder. "Well, I'm actually bi. Though yeah, I do prefer women - trust me, _way_ more fun."

"Oh?" Kara hadn't met woman who could make her blush so hard.

Well, besides Lena.

"Sara!"

Glancing back into the hanger, Sara saw Oliver waving her over. "Gotta run, see you soon." And with a wink, she headed back inside.

Bisexual, huh?

* * *

It was not lost on Alex Danvers how the tables had turned. A few years prior, a bar happened to be the last place she would ever find herself nervous. But now that she happened to be at a _lesbian_ bar, the butterflies in her stomach wouldn't quit.

Maggie had decided to mix it up from their usual spot among other beings to another bar she would frequent from time to time with some human friends.

Logically, Alex knew she had no reason to be nervous. Her case certainly didn't include a fear of being outed. And it wasn't like she was looking to pick someone up or even get picked up.

Maggie's friends were nice enough - she was just having a hard time following the conversation. Her eyes kept flittering around the room taking in all the people there.

Their group was sitting in a booth, Maggie and Alex on one side and two of Maggie's guy friends on the other. Another woman had also came with them but had left to catch up with other friends. A good amount of people would come over and say hi from time to time. Evidently, Alex was sitting with the popular kids and it wasn't helping her nerves. Especially when a pretty girl would ask who Alex was and offer a smile.

Maggie seemed to make quick work of them, though, which was both thrilling and a bit awkward. Alex didn't really know how to act. They hadn't even gone on a date yet, the shorter brunette only visiting her the previous night and confessing she liked her.

"So, what is it that you do?" One of the men, Danny, asked her.

Luckily for Alex, her paying half attention could pass as someone paying full attention with all of her DEO training.

"I work for the FBI."

"Oh my God, that's so exciting!" The other guy, Steven, exclaimed. Sipping on his drink, he leaned in conspiratorially. "Is that how you two met?"

Maggie ribbed Alex with a sly smile. "Yup. The big ol' government agents needed the lowly science police's help cracking a case." 

Alex rolled her eyes, tapping at her glass. It was then she noticed her Jack and Coke was all but empty.

"Wait. Was that when you met Supergirl, Maggie?" Without waiting for an answer from Maggie, Danny turned back to Alex. "Do you know Supergirl?"

"So, the questions I can answer begin and end with the job title." Alex shrugged.

"That's no fun." Steven sighed as he mixed his drink. "Well, if you happen to know her, and I'm not saying that you do, you should tell her to freshen up the suit. It is literally last season's."

It did get a chuckle out of Alex as she drank the last of her drink. Winn would enjoy that.

The girl they had originally arrived with, Liz, came barreling back to the table. Pushing the guys to squeeze further into the booth, she was smiling and looking around excitedly towards the bar.

"Did you guys see who just walked in?"

"I don't know who walked in but clearly your manners walked out," Steven retorted.

Ignoring him, she continued, "Lena Luthor."

"Lena- what?" Alex's eyes widened in surprise.

Sure enough, she spotted Lena Luthor standing at the bar. Sporting her usual look of sophisticated and sexy, she was talking animatedly with one of the bartenders.

"Have a little crush, Danvers?" Maggie laughed. Alex's felt herself heat up a bit at that.

"Honey, please. I have a crush on Lena Luthor," Danny said. All of them were looking over at the woman in question.

"Hey, I'm not saying I'd kick her out of bed," Maggie agreed.

"What is she doing here?" Alex merely asked, more to herself than anyone else.

"You know she's a lesbian, right?" Liz asked her, finally looking away from the CEO to look at Alex. "Come on, newbie. She's, like, only the most high profile gay we have in National City."

" _What?!_ "

"Okay, let's be fair. She hasn't actually addressed it," Steven explained.

"Please, she doesn't exactly hide it." Liz argued.

Maggie tapped Alex on the arm to get her attention. "Ever since she moved here, she checks out this bar a couple times a month. We all think she's with the manager, the bartender over there." She motioned her head in the direction of Lena and the woman she was talking to.

The rest of the group continued to share the latest gossip on Lena, but Alex completely zoned out at that point. She had been at the DEO's headquarters while Kara and J'onn had tried to stop the Medusa virus a couple nights prior. And since Lena was interview by the police department, this was the first time Alex had seen her.

How close had they come to losing J'onn, Alex wondered. Lena was the reason he was still alive.

"I'm going to get another drink," Alex mumbled before getting up and heading up to the bar. She saw Lena had moved to stand on the side of the bar, right by where the servers would collect the drinks. Alex marveled at the woman's ability to make wearing stilettos seem so effortless.

The area around Lena seemed a little less crowded; perhaps the large man leaning against the wall behind Lena with an earpiece had something to do with it. Still, for someone who just had her mother locked up, and with brother with endless connections, Alex thought perhaps she should have waited a bit before going out and celebrating.

The DEO agent walked up to the empty space next to Lena where the bar turned the long way. She wasn't planning on interrupting the other woman's conversation, but the bartender she was talking to noticed Alex and turned her attention to her anyways.

"What are you drinking, babe?" She spoke up over the noise of the music, leaning over the bar.

"Jack and Coke, please," Alex answered as she pulled out her cardholder from her jacket.

Her cover was blown. Lena Luthor, with her signature dark red lipstick and piercing green eyes, was staring right at her. "This city keeps getting smaller and smaller, doesn't it Agent Danvers?" The young Luthor had a twinkle in her eye.

Alex slowly nodded her head in agreement, returning her smile with a smaller one. "Yes, you could definitely say that." She twirled her credit card to have something to do with her hands. Alex's eyes drifted over Lena's shoulder for a moment, before looking back at her. "He's not the only one, is he?"

"Two in the back, another in the front, car at the ready with _another_ man who is more than your average driver." Lena sighed as stared down at her drink, running a finger around the rim. "Rather inconvenient, really."

She wasn't wrong.

"It's smart, regardless." Alex said, just as her drink was placed in front of her. "Thank you." As she reached her credit card over, Lena placed her hand on her forearm and pulled it back down.

"It's my treat. I believe I owe you a proper thank you for saving my life," Lena said, sharing a look with the bartender.

"You basically returned the favor a minute later, it's fine."

"You were halfway out of his hold by then, Supergirl would have stopped him," Lena pointed out.

Seeing the bartender move on to help others, Alex put her cardholder away. "I have to say, I wouldn't have expected to have seen you here tonight," she confessed, taking a sip of her drink.

"Why wouldn't you have expected to see me _here_?" Lena bit her lower lip, clearly amused.

"Well- not because... not that I mean _here_ , here. I- uh, I would have been surprised if I had seen you _anywhere._ So soon, that is." If it wouldn't have only made her look stupider, Alex would have slapped herself.

Lena nodded her head in understanding, but before she could respond, a server had come up from behind her to gather drinks.

"Sorry, Ms. Luthor," the younger woman apologized, causing Lena stepped closer to Alex to get out of her way.

"Not at all Tina, I'm in your way." Lena smiled reassuringly at the girl before looking back at Alex. "I can't live in fear forever, can I?" Her voice had lowered so her moving closer at least allowed Alex to better hear her.

"No, you can't." Alex took another sip of her drink, then after a pause, added, "I have to thank you, for everything you did-"

"You don't." Quickly cutting her off, Lena shook her head. She finished off her drink with a long swig and motioned for another. "Although since you mention it, I'm surprised I haven't seen your sister with a story like that to be written."

It was clear from her body language and the slight change of topic that Lena felt uncomfortable discussing that night. At the mention of Kara, Alex sighed and tried not to think too hard about the fact that her sister still wasn't back. She hadn't heard from her since she had left.

"She's out of town, family emergency." That time Alex took long sip of her drink. She felt warm and a little sad, but at least her nerves seemed to have died down.

"Oh? Sorry to hear that."

"It's fine, a cousin just needed a hand. No big deal." Who was she trying to tell? Lena or herself?

"You couldn't take time off?"

"We found out so last minute. I should have went, though."

The bartender that Lena had been talking to previously brought her a new drink. "Are you going to be okay going home?" she asked.

"Yes, I believe 5 bodyguards will suffice." Lena gave her a pointed look.

"They're new, Lena."

Alex looked back and forth between the two women, definitely sensing a familiarity between them. Dating, though? She wasn't sure.

"It's alright." Lena held up her hand, seemingly finished with the conversation.

And man, Alex was glad she was not at the end of that glare. The bartender didn't seem to enjoy it either and quickly turned away. "You know, not to pick sides, but how can you trust them?" Alex offered up.

"Considering your organization vetted them, you tell me?" Lena smiled.

"When?"

"Hmm... J'onn gave me his information after we had met. He sent these gentlemen over yesterday."

Of course he did. Alex pulled out her own card at that. "In case you can't get in touch with him quick enough, or if anything comes up you think you can't bother him with." she offered up, passing her card along. If the woman wasn't going to let her thank her, she would take her damn business card. "Seriously, use it."

Lena tried to contain her smile, but it was a losing battle.

"Agent Danvers?"

"Yeah?"

"As much as I'm enjoying your company, I'm not sure your _friend_ is very happy right now," Lena said, tapping the card on the table.

"Oh shit." Yup, she officially had too much to drink. How long had she been talking to Lena? Since when was she standing so close to her?

"Don't! Don't look back." Lena shook her head with a laugh, reading her mind. "It's fine. Act natural. Oh, Tina, perfect." The young server had returned to bring back empty glasses. "Can you please bring another round to Agent Danvers' table? Make sure the all their drinks are on my tab," Lena instructed her, placing a hand on Alex's forearm. "As a _thank you_ for you and your organizations help, understand Agent? That is what you came up here to discuss, isn't it?"

Alex could have kissed her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the purpose of following the story timeline, Kara left to Earth 1 on a Saturday morning where she spent two full days there. Alex ran into Lena at the bar the following weekend after Kara had left, and this chapter picks up a few days after that with the ending of the chapter being a full two weeks after Kara had left.

"Is there anything else left, Jess?" Lena asked as she reviewed the rest of the weeks schedule again.

Her young assistant sat in one of the guest chairs on the other side of her desk, scribbling away in her notebook.

"I think your week is set as best as we can configure it at this point. One thing to note, we are still receiving requests for interviews."

"Anyone we know?"

Her tone was more clipped then she meant it to be.

"No, Miss Luthor." If Jess thought anything of the question she didn't give any indication. But they both knew Kara Danvers hadn't gone this long without making an appearance since first visiting with Clark Kent.

The CEO merely hummed.

It was no coincidence that this was the longest period a certain blonde heroine hadn't been spotted either. After Alex Danvers had mentioned Kara had left to help a _cousin_ with a family emergency, Lena had kept a close eye on news surrounding Metropolis. But there was no indication Supergirl was there.

Perhaps it was Clark Kent, not Superman, that had a personal emergency?

Containing the urge to slam her hand down on her desk for the sake of _not_ scaring her assistant, Lena took a deep breath before exhaling slowly.

"If that's all Jess, you can head home for the evening."

Jess quickly gathered the multiple paperwork around her on Lena's desk and scattered on the chair next to her before bidding her boss a good night. Lena returned it distractedly as she ran another search in Google News under the 'World' section for "Supergirl."

Once again nothing new turned up that didn't have to do with the Medusa incident. No recent hero work, no recent sightings.

Pushing away from her desk Lena turned to stand by the windows, arms crossed and a frown on her face.

"Where are you?"

That was one of two questions that had continued to plague Lena's mind since she had last seen Supergirl. Or, more correctly, Kara Danvers' alter ego.

The second question had been, how could she have missed what was staring her in the face?

It wasn't even a good disguise! The personality difference, if it was done on purpose, she would give Kara her due credit. Where the young reporter was hesitant, the Superhero was confident. Kara dressed to fit in the background. Stuttered over her words ( _fake?_ ), was unsure of herself at times ( _fake?_ ).

When Supergirl would appear, it like straight out of a movie - Lena could practically feel the awesome power emitting from her. How could she think beyond that to even realize she might have seen this person before in another setting, hiding in plain sight?

Hell, Kara herself had passed her alien detection device.

...The device?

Lena's head whipped to the right of her office where a safe sat. How had she passed? Quickly the engineer went through the possibilities.

On the one hand, perhaps it was a faulty unit that simply didn't work, giving them both positive results. The odds were low, especially with the level of testing her team did. It should have never gotten to her if there was a chance of that. On the other hand, and the odds were low once again, it could have randomly malfunctioned when Kara tried it. No different then when a phone might suddenly freeze for seemingly no reason.

What fantastic luck would Kara have if either of those were the case?

Lena quickly crossed the room and unlocked the safe with her fingerprints before pulling out the device. Crouching down to open one of the cabinets, she also pulled out a toolbox before walking back to her desk and quickly getting to work.

If those two scenarios hadn't played out there was only one other option left, assuming her team gave her a correctly functioning device, Kara must have manipulated it to give a false positive. And finally getting the case off, Lena didn't need anymore proof. There were burn marks all along the inside of the case and there was clear damage to much of the wiring.

Feeling a fresh new wave of anger Lena threw the device back in the direction of the safe, the sound of metal bouncing off the ground loudly filled the otherwise quiet office.

"Is this a bad time?"

It certainly wasn't the Danvers Lena had been expecting, but there stood Agent Danvers at the entrance of her office.

"Does it matter?" It was never good news for her when the DEO came knocking, but she knew it wasn't something she could avoid. Not waiting for an answer, Lena walked over to the couch in the back of the office and motioned for Alex to join her. "Come in."

The agent nodded over her shoulder to someone outside before fully shutting the door. Alex was dressed in casual day clothes that didn't give up her profession, but Lena caught a glimpse of a gun sitting in its holster behind her leather jacket as she moved to sit on the couch.

Lena reached down to take off her heels before crossing her legs, making herself as comfortable as she could be. While she could feel the beginning of a headache, she would at least give her feet a break.

"So, you are human?" Alex asked as she eyed her movement.

Lena laughed. "Believe me, I would have taken them off a lot earlier if I hadn't lost track of time. What can I help you with, Agent Danvers?"

"Project Cadmus," Alex responded shortly.

The CEO sighed as she looked down at her hands resting on her lap. "I gave all the information I had the night my- Lillian Luthor was arrested. I'm afraid anything past that, I can't help you."

Alex shifted on the couch to sit sideways, fully facing the young Luthor.

"You didn't give them anything on Project Cadmus that night, Ms Luthor." This was a very different woman than the one who had approached her at the bar a few days prior.

"Simply put, I don't know anything about it. It was only because of the messages Cadmus broadcasted to the public that I even learned of the organization. And I only came to realize Lillian was their leader after Supergirl herself told me." Lena rehashed what she had already told the police. "In order to disperse the Medusa virus, she needed my isotope-"

"And you double-crossed her with one that was inert. I know." Alex huffed, resting an elbow along the back of the couch to be able to cradle her head in her hand.

Looking at the agent, she was surprised to find her look so defeated. Certainly she could understand Agent Danvers's drive to do her job and to do it well. Just because Lillian Luthor was currently in jail didn't mean there wasn't a new head of Cadmus. But at looking at the other woman, you would think there was another imminent threat.

"You look like you could use a drink." Lena stood up and crossed over to where glasses sat waiting for her.

"I'm on the clock."

Ignoring the pitcher of water that was sitting with the glasses, Lena opted for an unopened bottle of scotch.

"That's not an answer," she said over her shoulder while holding up the bottle.

After a moments hesitation, "Yeah, one."

If there was an imminent threat from Cadmus, it would make sense that Alex felt added pressure with Supergirl missing. That led to a new thought Lena hadn't really considered - had something happened to Kara?

"You're sister hasn't returned, has she?" Lena wondered. Then, for the sake of seeming casual, added, "I must admit, I do miss seeing her waltz in here without an appointment and bothering my schedule obsessed assistant in the process." Finished with pouring the drinks, she walked back over to the couch and handed one to Alex who thanked her.

"She isn't back." It was said in a way that told Lena that conversation wouldn't continue.

Sipping on her drink, she tried to not think of that idea that maybe Kara wasn't okay. "Agent Danvers, if you can give me more context to what you are looking for, maybe I can better assist you." She could almost see the other woman's mind working, perhaps wondering how much she could tell someone classified information.

"You really didn't know your brother was first involved in Cadmus?" Alex asked her.

No surprise there, Lena thought. Shaking her head no, she didn't say anything further.

Downing her drink in one shot, it seemed the other woman had made up her mind. "Cadmus started as a secret division in the government created to develop weapons that could combat aliens. To be specific, to combat Superman should the need arise. More recently, Cadmus switched to research in genetic engineering, but when that happened it went off the books," Alex explained rapidly. "Any guesses on who was funding it?"

She only needed one. "Luthor Corp?"

"That's what the evidence is pointing to. It's clear to us it was Lex in continuation with Lillian. We used Lillian's phone to track down the recent locations she had visited in these past few months when things were ramping up and we did find a couple of safe houses and labs. But we can't find their headquarters." Alex stood up to pace around a bit, clearly feeling antsy. "I was hoping your company could reveal something we missed."

Nothing would ever come easy with her fight to save her company thanks to Lex's ghost, Lena thought. "Are you driving after this?"

"Yes."

"Well, if you would like another drink, I can have my driver take you back," Lena offered as she walked back over to where the bottle stood.

"I was planning on going back to the office."

"Believe me Agent Danvers, you won't like what I have to say. There won't be much to report," Lena said, turning around to look at the other woman with her empty glass in her hand.

Alex shrugged her shoulders, walking over to join Lena. "Only because I have never and probably will never have scotch that good again."

Lena accepted that with a small smile and turned back to pour Alex's second round, topping off her first.

"I must have looked like such a fool at the renaming ceremony  _relieved_ to see John Corben in the middle of the chaos." Lena shook her head at the thought. "A big part of Lex's 'success' was due to the fact that he was very good at concealing his plans. Remember, it was not until it got towards the very end did people realize that kind, generous, brilliant Lex Luthor had actually gone mad.

"The very first thing I did when became CEO of Luthor Corp was go over the whole corporation from top to bottom with an external legal and financial team to try and learn what he had been up to. And what we learned was that every company we have acquired under Lex's leadership, from the very beginning, was and remains on the up and up. Make no mistake, that is the only reason why this corporation was even salvageable." Lena handed Alex her drink before she walked over to the side of her desk and leaned against it. "Now, we could see when and how much money Lex would funnel out of the company - that falls right into line with it going into Cadmus, as you said - but the money _only_ went one way. And it was through a series of tunnels that we could hardly follow. Only with your resources would you find where it would end up.

"Believe me, I've had his phone records and his personal computers all gone over with a fine comb after the police had their turn; he seemed to always follow a rule to keep Luthor Corp and his _personal_ ambitions very separate. No digital footprint - no files - not even as hard copies. Why did I bring up John Corben? To this day, I am completely in the dark which of his associates were even aware of what he was up to, and who were active participants. Everyone at our headquarters is a new hire; it was not fun letting go of skilled employees over the fear that they could not be trusted. And not to sound arrogant, Agent Danvers, but I'm very good at what I do. If you really think your team could find something I missed, we can go through my legal department and you are more then welcome to try. At this point, I'm more concerned about a leak in our tech then I am anything else." And with that, Lena took a deep breath before taking a long sip of her drink.

To her credit, Alex didn't look like she was going to argue with her. She just had that same look of defeat as she looked into the bottom of the drink in her hand.

"If I can help in any other way, I will," Lena offered.

Alex shook her head at that and chuckled. "Are you sure you aren't adopted?"

"Actually, I'm very sure I was."

"Yeah?"

"I'll take the fact that you don't know my life's story as comfort the DEO must not have considered me _that_ much of a threat," Lena said, genuinely surprised. "But you can't expect me to believe I wasn't suspect number one?"

Alex was looking at her carefully for a moment. "Supergirl was adamant of your innocence."

That made Lena pause. If that was the truth, something else didn't add up.

"Who was it then that sent your sister to question me? I was certain it was Supergirl."

"That would have been me," Alex admitted easily. "And if it's worth anything, she didn't believe you were guilty either."

Her heart was going to beat right out of her chest, she was sure of it. And why on Earth did her cheeks have to heat up now of all times? Clearing her throat, Lena looked out to the side where the windows were. She thought of the first time Supergirl appeared on her balcony. How Lena had realized she was there almost immediately but the superhero didn't walk in until Lena stood to acknowledged her, calling her name.

Kara had begun that conversation with her back to Lena. Had she thought she might be recognized that night?

"So, what did that thing ever do to you," Alex interrupted her thoughts.

"Excuse me?"

Alex pointed down at the broken alien detection device that was laying not far from her feet.

"I'm afraid that's one of our newer products that needs a great deal of work. Or to be completely scratched, I haven't decided yet." Lena tilted her head to the side as she gazed down at it. She was sure Jess would love to learn in the morning that her schedule would have to be changed again to fit in meeting with the engineering team. Deciding to test her luck, Lena offered up, "Your sister actually tried one of them. They are used to detect aliens, or that is the plan anyways. Perhaps she mentioned writing about it?"

That time Lena caught it. The slight freeze in the agents frame. It was the first time Lena smiled that day.

"Oh yeah? I think she did, yeah." Alex nodded her head as she took another gulp of her drink.

To give the obviously stressed out agent a break, Lena decided to turn the conversation to something more enjoyable. "I didn't get a chance to see you before I left the bar the other night. That was your first time there, right? Did you enjoy it?"

"It was a cool place. Thanks again for covering our drinks, you didn't have to do that," Alex said, then added, "Why do you think that was my first time there?"

"I asked a couple of the staff," Lena admitted just as easily as Alex had admitted to sending her sister to question Lena.

"You know the staff pretty well there, don't you?"

"I should hope so, I own the bar."

"Really?" Alex's expression quickly changed from suspicion to surprised. "I don't like to assume. Are you...?"

"...a lesbian?" Lena offered up. Alex must have only recently come out, she decided, when she merely nodded back. "You're smart not to assume. That can certainly lead to awkward situations."

Alex cleared her throat, merely nodding her head again. "How long have you been living in National City that you already own a local bar?"

"Well, it's just a small personal investment. A friend mentioned they couldn't afford to stay open - you can blame all the dating apps for that, by the way - so I joined the other original two partners. If we have months we don't do well, it's easy enough for me to write off the loss while affording to make sure the rent and the staff gets paid."

Alex looked like her like she had grown a second head. And that was saying something for a woman who might have seen that in her line of work.

"Okay, who are you?" The DEO agent laughed.

Lena realized this was much easier topic to pull out more from the other woman. Especially if she offered up information about herself.

"Look, Tim Cook comes out of the closet and it's applause and cheers. It's a great thing he did that, and I'm happy for it. But it will never be like that for me; I can't escape my name. But I'll help out where I can. And the less my personal life is out there, the better. L-Corp does do business in countries that aren't in favor of such things. I have a lot of employees and their families to think about at a time we haven't yet found our footing enough for my liking."

Alex didn't say anything after that, at least not for a minute or two. Both women merely drank their drinks.

"I must admit, Ms. _Luthor_ , I had you pegged very wrong." A beat. "I'm sorry."

It made Lena a bit uncomfortable to hear that.

"Is that you or the scotch talking?" It was much easier to laugh and joke.

* * *

"Looks like we got that drink after all, huh Super?" Kara heard the teasing voice of Sara Lance from behind her. "Don't get me wrong, you can still introduce me to your sister."

The team, after just having been congratulated and thanked by the president, was having a small party to celebrate before having to go their separate ways.

"Absolutely, Sara." Kara nodded along. It was much easier to just go along then dig a deeper hole for herself when it came to Sara Lance. "You'll have to look me up on Earth 38."

"Will do," the White Canary said, nodding her head away from where the group stood. "Ready to head home?"

"Am I ever," Kara agreed as they walked together. "I mean, I'm so happy to have met you guys, but it's definitely time to head home."

"What's the first thing you're going to do when you get back?"

"Umm..." A certain Luthor immediately popped into Kara's mind. She had been wondering how she could make it up to the CEO for snooping. Perhaps bringing her some freshly cut plumerias? Where did they even grow?

"More like who?" Her friend laughed, taking a swig from her flask. "Who's got you blushing, Kara Danvers?"

"Whaaat? No. No one. All the champagne, straight to my head." Kara pointed back over her shoulder where most of the group still stood, cheering to their success. "No one at all."

"Yeah, I bet that one sounded more convincing inside your head."

"In an unrelated topic, how would one say 'I'm sorry for snooping into your personal life by lying to you about a fake article I'm writing' to a friend?" Kara asked.

"How close is 'one' to this person?"

"'One' is the only friend to said person. Not that said person is a loser or anything. Just new to the city. And carrying a lot of baggage."

"And, how pretty is she?"

"Pff only like the most gorg- Hey!"

Sara smiled, her gaze off to the side to see Barry, Oliver, and Dig had all but caught up to them.

Kara fidgeted her glasses and tried to maintain some semblance of cool as their small group walked a short distance towards the open hanger doors.

"You ready to see if Cisco's gadget works?" Barry smiled at her.

"Ready!" Kara answered quickly, pulling out the gadget and holding it up. "And remember, if you guys ever need me, I'm just a call away," she added, looking back around at everyone that stood behind her.

It was fitting that Oliver Queen gave her a short salute and returned the offer. "Same here."

Sharing one last glance at everyone before smiling at Barry, Kara walked further out from them and clicked on the device. A familiar swirling blue portal appeared immediately, and with a deep breath, Kara walked ahead right through it. Cisco couldn't have programmed her destination any better as she stepped out of the portal and into the very middle of her apartment. She stood facing towards her front door, staring at her kitchen and dining room exactly how she had found Barry and Cisco two days prior.

It was completely dark out and probably very late, but she was finally home. Turning around to collapse on her couch, Kara found herself face-to-face with the barrel end of a gun.

"Alex?" Kara jerked her head to the side reflexively though stood her ground with her hands half up.

" _Kara?_ "

" _Yeah!_ And if that's not alien grade I'm not sure how helpful it would be," Kara joked. Behind Alex she noticed her couch had already been taken with blankets and pillows laid out. "Aww... did someone miss me?"

Alex had only just lowered her weapon when she stiffened at those words.

"Miss you? _Miss you_?!" Her sister's voice cracked as she turned around to walk back to the living room. "It's been two weeks. Two weeks, Kara, with no word. I didn't know if you were _hurt_. I didn't know if you were _dead_." Alex had turned on a couple of the lamps before spinning around to face Kara. It was then that she could actually take in the blonde's outfit. "What are you- where you at a _party_?!"

Kara tried to answer, pulling down at the bottom of her long sleeved dress that came halfway up her thighs, but she was left in shock as well.

_She had been gone for two weeks?_

"Well- you know... we saved the world... ya-aaay." Her sentence ended on a rather weak note.

Alex was not having it.

"Alright, okay! I'm so, so, so sorry, Alex. On Barry's Earth it was only two days, I swear. If I had known time moved that much slower there, I would have had them get in touch with you." Kara walked over to Alex tentatively, feeling guilt wash over her. She could see the worry and stress clearly evident on her sister's face. "It won't happen again, I promise. Can I please have a hug now? I missed you."

Alex's shoulders dropped at her words and Kara saw her eyes had watered before she closed the remaining distance and pulled her into a big hug.

"Why does your favorite thing in the world have to be scaring me to death?"

Kara shook her head, holding on to Alex as tight as she could without physically hurting her. "Have I really been gone that long?"

Alex pulled back before answering with a pointed look, "Consider yourself lucky James is in a position to cover for your ass. Something tells me that would not have flown with Cat Grant." Plopping down on the couch, the DEO agent covered up under her blanket, rubbing at her eyes tiredly. "It's past midnight, so in a few hours it will be exactly 2 weeks."

Kara kicked off her flats before dropping down next to her sister, also covering up her bare legs with the blanket. "So was everything okay over here?"

"No, no. You don't get to visit another universe without telling me everything. Spill."

At that Kara couldn't help but be excited, launching into her adventures with the other superheros she had met. A team mixed of metahumans and vigilantes (Alex gave her a pointed look at that, but Kara hardly noticed) and an alien as well with Kara in the mix. She explained how the dominators were attacking that Earth but they managed to take them down. She went off on a tangent about a woman named Sara Lance who was a former assissin and how Kara was certain Alex would have met her match in sparring if they ever did meet.

Her sister merely rolled her eyes at that.

Kara also confessed all of her frustrations about working with a team and being told to stand down, but also how she enjoyed working with those who she didn't have to fear she would constantly need to check on. When Alex gave her an offended look and was about to launch into a tirade about how she could handle herself _long_ before Supergirl had started working with the DEO, Kara quickly explained that human or not, she would always be worried about her _sister's_ safety during missions.

Kara showed her the interdimensional extrapolator that Cisco had given her, reinforcing to Alex that they could communicate should the need ever arise again.

"Winn's going to love that. You know, he was running himself ragged trying to figure out how to get to you." Alex yawned for the tenth time in a span of 10 minutes and Kara knew she should let her get some sleep. "Honestly, I was about to get Lena Luthor to figure it out."

" _Lena?_ " Kara felt her heart skip a beat.

"Well yeah, she is an engineer after all. Not to mention she has a company at her disposal that specializes in these things. God know's how happy I am to never need to see Maxwell Lord again."

"Alex?" Kara felt nervous energy run through her as Lena Luthor raced across her mind. It had been two weeks since her last interaction with her and that was basically Kara acting as a government spy. "What happened after her mom was arrested? Have you seen her?"

"Yeah, at her lesbian bar." Alex yawned, eyes shut. "Then we drank in her office."

In a normal situation, Kara would have taken pity on her older sister. Let her sleep in peace when it was clear to her she hadn't been sleeping at all. But this was not a normal situation.

And Kara sprang up at Alex's words, causing her sister to be startled awake.

"Kara? What the fu-?"

"What do you mean at her lesbian bar? You- you drank with her? In her _office_?"

"Yeah? I had to go over there to follow up with her on Cadmus. She happens to have really good scotch." Alex rubbed at her eyes tiredly.

"What happened to, 'she's a Luthor, she can't be trusted?'" Kara couldn't believe her ears. On multiple points.

"Well, I would think you of all people would be happy if we came around on Lena Luthor." Alex ran a hand threw her hair. "Can I sleep now? We can talk in the morning."

" _Lesbian bar?!_ " Kara would have laughed if the whole situation didn't seem so ludicrous.

"Maggie and her friends took me there, she kind of showed up, what do you want me to say?" Alex shrugged her shoulders. "You didn't know that about her, either?"

"That's... that's... why would we talk about that?" Kara fidgeted with her glasses as she looked around for her phone, tripping over her discarded shoes when she got up to go grab it from the kitchen island where she had left it. "We have a very _professional_ _relationship_ , Alex."

"I'm sure you do," Alex muttered from where she sat, leaning back down on the couch.

"Shoot. It's dead." Kara raced over to her bedroom to find her charger.

"Kara?" Alex called out. "What's the matter with you?"

"You know what? I- I think I went to the wrong universe."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I greatly appreciate all the kudos and comments. If you want to reach out more directly, find me on tumblr @ tb-gw.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We won't be seeing Sarah for a bit. If 2 days on Barry's Earth equals 2 weeks on Kara's earth, I have to account for the time difference.

It was nearly noon when the Danvers sisters woke up. Both were thoroughly exhausted and in no mood to go out - a box of frozen waffles would have to do.

"At some point you're going to have to learn how to cook" Alex said, grabbing the outstretched plate from her sister.

"What makes you think I don't know how to cook?" Kara asked as she drizzled syrup over her own waffles.

"Using heat vision on frozen, premade food doesn't exactly add up to cooking."

"Well, my stomach isn't complaining, and neither will yours."

Alex rolled her eyes as she dug into her food. Her appetite had suddenly returned with her sister's arrival back in their universe and she was starving.

"Winn and James are going to be here in a couple hours," Kara said in between mouthfuls. "Catch me up. What did I miss?"

"You mean you have an interest in something in this universe outside of Lena Luthor?"

At Alex's smirk, Kara smacked her fork down on the table and fiddled with her napkin as she stuttered out a response.

"Well, I- I just think it's _really_ interesting how when I said Lena was innocent, everyone was all,  _'Luthors are pretty good actors'_ -"

"That was Winn."

" _'Luthors love epic criminal schemes'._ "

"Still Winn."

"Now she's your new drinking buddy," Kara finished with a pointed glare at the DEO agent.

"In my defense... she has great taste in scotch," Alex supplied, having her fun. "Look, in our line of work we have to be skeptical. Even with _Supergirl's_ opinion, who wants to look for the good in everyone. But I'll give it to you this time Kara, you were right. She is literally the exact opposite of what I thought, okay? So enjoy it, live it up." 

"Enjoy what? Lena knows I was spying on her. As in, Kara Danvers, her only friend in National City," Kara frowned as she adjusted her glasses. "I have to go talk to her. The DEO could get me her address, right?"

Alex paused at that, unsure of what to say.

"Who am I kidding, Winn is coming."

"Kara, you can't go showing up at Lena's door like that."

"Why not? She showed up at mine."

"To get to Supergirl. To stop a bunch of robbers using alien technology. What's your excuse that can't wait until Monday?"

Kara deflated at that, moving the remainder of her food around on her plate.

"Don't be so worried Kara. I told her I sent you to talk to her and that it was you who believed in her the whole time. It's going to be fine."

At those words, Kara perked up a bit.

"Okay... yeah... anyway," Kara shook her head, looking back up at Alex. "What about you? How are things with Maggie?"

"Well turns out, I am about as good at dating women as I am dating men." It was Alex's turn to shake her head.

"What happened?"

"We went on a couple dates after Medusa. It just seemed like every time she would zig, I would zag. Do you know what I mean?" Alex sighed, leaning her chin against one of her hands.

"Uh, yes. Story of my Earth life," Kara gave her a small smile. "I don't think that's a big deal, though. This was the first time you went out with a girl. It's going to take a while figuring it out. I'm going on 13 years now."

Alex had a good laugh at that. "Great, I'll peak in my 40s."

* * *

"Ready to call it?" The voice of J'onn Jonzz came in through the microphone in Kara's ear.

Early Monday morning found Supergirl doing a quick patrol before Kara Danvers would make her return to CatCo. And while there was always less action in the early morning hours, the heroine hadn't thought twice about it.

Kara basked in the warm light of the sun as she landed on one of the taller skyscrapers, enjoying the view.

She had missed her city and even more so she had missed watching over it.

"Yeah, I think I'm going to head home and get ready for work," she answered, her eyes lingering on L-Corp's building a short distance away. "Be honest, how much did you miss me?"

There was soft chuckle and Kara could picture the head of the DEO shaking his head as he stared up at the multiple monitors.

"Plenty, having to pick up the slack while you were on vacation."

"Uh oh... I think the DEO has gotten a little too used to me."

"Have a good day, Supergirl."

"Bye J'onn." She clicked off the mic and pulled it out of her ear before tucking it into her boot.

The weekend had dragged on much too long for Kara; she couldn't shake the feeling something was off.

Alex had convinced her not to go knocking on Lena Luthor's door over the weekend. Kara hadn't liked that at first, but after getting no response to her texts to Lena she had been relieved she hadn't gone.

Taking off, she let her curiosity get the best of her and slowly approached L-Corp, circling around the building to where Lena's office was located. Sure enough, the CEO was there and Kara didn't know if she felt more happy or more nervous.

Lena had never ignored her before and it didn't sit well with the Super. Clearly she had upset her friend and she was desperate to talk to her and make things right.

Landing softly on the balcony, she hesitated. This was the first time Lena hadn't noticed her on arrival.

The brunette was standing at her desk with her back to the balcony, staring intently at some paperwork in one of her hands while the other played with the ends of her hair that was up in a high ponytail. She was wearing a sleeveless white top tucked into a black pencil skirt. Kara followed her movement as Lena first shifted her weight on her heels, her calves flexing, then up her figure as she leaned over her desk to grab another sheet.

Feeling herself flush of embarrassment, Kara gave a couple swift knocks on the glass harder then she intended, startling the woman inside. Turning around, Lena had a look of shock on her face at the sight of Supergirl smiling sheepishly and giving her a small wave.

Reaching blindly behind herself to put the paperwork down, Lena walked towards the balcony door and unlocked it before pushing it open.

"Supergirl?"

"Hi! Is this a bad time?"

"A bit. I have a lot to get ready for." Lena let the door close behind her as she stepped out. "Did you need something?"

Rocking back on her heels, Kara didn't know how to respond and felt disappointed she wasn't invited in. She noticed goosebumps appear on the other woman's bare arms as she crossed them.

"No, nothing." She lifted her hands up to her waist in habit. "I just got back to the city and wanted to see how you were."

"How I am?" Lena tilted her head.

Something was off.

"Yes." And now Kara felt off. "It's just- with your mother and Cadmus and all."

There was the slightest indication of a flinch at the mention of the word 'mother' but Lena recovered immediately.

Kara was unsure of how to follow up.

"If I could help at all..." This was not going well. Kara didn't know if she had ever felt more awkward as Supergirl, frustration seeping in.

Putting on the suit was when she would normally feel at her most confident - Kara Zor-El fulfilling what she was meant to do. And Lena Luthor would normally be, for a lack of a better word, enamored by her. _Happy_ and _excited_ to see her. Not closed off like she was now.

"Well, if you would like to meet with the board of directors in my place, perhaps you could better manage their concerns." Lena's smile didn't quite reach her eyes.

"It's not exactly my specialty, but I could give it a shot." Supergirl shrugged her shoulders, trying to contain the urge to throw herself over the balcony.

Thankfully, Jess had chosen that moment to walk in to the office, coffee in one hand and an iPad in the other, freezing halfway to the desk when she noticed the two.

"Duty calls." Lena motioned for her to stay. "Was that all you-"

"Yes," Kara answered quickly. "I'll let you get back..."

Lena nodded her head as Supergirl hovered up a few feet, heading back inside without another glance over her shoulder.

A short while later, Kara Danvers discovered _her_ luck wasn't fairing much better than Supergirl's. It seemed like everyone in the office was actively trying to avoid her. Dave practically tripped over his own feet as he muttered a greeting and turned back in the direction he had come from.

It was just about all she could take as she stormed into James office to get to the bottom of it.

"James!"

The acting CEO of CatCo glanced up from the screen in front of him and smiled when he saw her.

"Kara, welcome back."

"Yeah, about that." Kara frowned, glancing back over her shoulder to eye what her coworkers were doing through the glass wall. "Why is everyone acting so strange around me?"

"What do you mean?" James asked as he came around from the desk and crossed his arms.

"I _mean_ , why is everyone running in the opposite direction when they see me?"

"Yeah... about that... it might have gotten around that the reason you were out sick is because of the shingles." James scratched the back of his neck.

"The shingles? What is _that_?" Kara glared at him. "James, that sounds like an old person problem, why would you tell them that?"

"Kara, you were gone for two weeks! I don't think the common cold would have cut it. It's no big deal. Just a... rash. Snapper was more than happy to make sure you stayed home, so it worked." James shrugged his shoulders. "But I really wouldn't travel to anymore dimensions for the time being if I were you."

"Oh, you think?" Kara huffed.

"Hey, what's wrong? I would have thought you would have been happy to be back at work."

And she would have been had a certain Luthor not given her the cold shoulder. But it wouldn't do any good telling James that.

Kara sighed, shifting her shoulder bag. "It's nothing. I should get to Snapper."

"Are you sure?" James called after her.

"Yes, we'll talk later," Kara said before pushing the door open and stepping out. "I am _fine_ Dave, perfectly healed!" She snapped at her co-worker as he jerked out of her way.

She hurried over to the reporting team hoping to find some relief among her colleagues. Most were already gathering in a conference room for their scheduled morning meeting so she too headed in.

"Hi Kara."

"Finally!"

"Jesus, Danvers, how bad was it?"

One by one a few of the reporters greeted her as she took a seat towards the back. The guy who was sitting next to her made a show of rolling his chair a few inches away from her just to laugh and move back at her glare.

 _I could throw them all into space, I could do it_ , she thought to herself miserably.

"I'm _teasing_ , Danvers. Relax," he said as he leaned back in his chair and checked his phone. "Feeling any better?"

"Evidently," she responded.

"Man, Snapper missed you a couple weeks ago." He ignored her tone. "Just when he was looking for you on a story, you _had_ to get sick."

"Yeah, you do have pretty bad timing, Kara." One of the female reporters sitting across from her winced.

"What are you guys talking about?" Kara frowned.

"Lena Luthor hasn't said anything to the media since ratting out her mom to the cops. You're the only reporter in the city that built any sort of relationship since she got here."

"She never issued a statement?" That was very unlike Lena.

"Eh, L-Corp issued a company statement, you know how those go. Luthor didn't say anything, though."

"So she still hasn't been interviewed?" Kara pushed up her glasses, thinking about the last time she saw Lena after her mother was arrested.

"Nope."

"If you are all about finished here," Snapper Carr muttered as he walked in, not bothering to look up from the paperwork in his hand. "We have a lot to go over and I'd like to have less office gossip and more digging for leads. Ponytail, nice of you to grace us of your presence."

That was about all Snapper had to say with respect to Kara, and for the first time she wouldn't have had it any other way. It was clear she had dropped low on the totem pole after her extended absence. And perhaps her boss wouldn't want to admit she would have actually been useful.

But her thoughts were only on the CEO and what she could be going through. It would only be a matter of time before the trial would start. She knew L-Corp's stock had taken a great hit from the bad publicity it had received. 

Before she knew it, the meeting was over and everyone was packing up around her. Snapper had already left the room and was halfway to his office.

Kara quickly jumped up and raced over to him.

"Chief," Kara called out, "Chief, I know Lena Luthor hasn't spoken out yet since her mother is arrested. I'd like to follow up with her."

"That's old news Danvers. Tony is on the trial." Snapper muttered as he shuffled through the paperwork on his desk.

"But  _I know_ Ms. Luthor, Chief. I can get her to talk to me." 

" _No,_ Danvers. Your concern is the new museum the city just permitted to be built. Get to it."

No luck at all.

* * *

"Jess, can you call my driver?" Lena requested out loud after dialing her assistant on her desk phone. "I'll be ready to leave in 10 minutes."

"Certainly, Ms. Luthor. Will that be all?"

"Yes, I believe so. Don't forget I will be in late tomorrow morning." Lena sighed as she checked her watch. It was a quarter past 5 in the afternoon and it would be the first time that week she would be leaving that early.

It couldn't be helped. Her eyes would not stay open. She was pushing near a 60 hour work week and there was still one day left before the weekend.

"Absolutely, I have your calendar blocked out for the morning. Take your time getting in, nothing is scheduled until the afternoon."

"Thank you Jess, feel free to head out as well. Did you need anything from me?"

"No but," the younger woman hesitated for a moment. "There is one thing."

"What's that?"

"Kara Danvers was just in to see you. Again."

Lena leaned back in her seat, rubbing the back of her neck as she felt herself tense up.

"Did she say what it was regarding?"

"No, Ms. Luthor. But before she left she did ask if her access to your office was revoked."

"What did you say?"

"Just that your schedule was tight in the upcoming weeks and she would need to schedule an appointment in advance from now on."

Lena felt a pang of guilt at that, remembering how many times she second guessed herself before letting her assistant know the new rule. She would have to be well prepared before she saw the reporter again. No more unexpected visits. 

"Did she?"

"No. But if I may say so, she looked upset."

"I see," Lena sighed. "Very well, that will be all Jess."

"Have a good night, Ms. Luthor."

Lena quickly shut off the line and headed out to the balcony. She took a deep breath as she held tight to the guard rail in front of her.

 _Kara hadn't bothered to make an appointment, perhaps she had given up,_ Lena thought. 

All week she had left Kara's texts and calls unanswered. She didn't know what to say. She certainly didn't know how to act around the other woman. 

When Supergirl had visited her Monday morning, Lena was left confused with her own feelings. After all the worrying and frustration when Supergirl had disappeared, Lena had felt numb to see her again. Maybe because it was the first time she had seen her again since the Medusa incident.

Lena glanced around at the sky, her eyes searching for what would not be found. 

_What do you expect to happen when you push someone away?_


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for having to read what was already seen on the episodes. This has apparently turned into a season 2 rewrite. I'd like to show my story's perspective though the same situations and why Kara would react differently - because of Lena, not Mon-El.

It was late in the evening when Supergirl landed on the balcony entrance of the DEO.

"Jewel thieves?" Alex asked, heading up the stairs to meet her sister while carrying a case of vials.

"Nabbed. I nabbed them," Supergirl shrugged a shoulder, moving along with Alex towards the agent's lab. "But, of course, Guardian had to show up and pick up some of the stragglers. That guy is really starting to get on my nerves."

"But he did help. That's something."

"Yeah, barely _,_ " Kara whined. " _I_ was the one who had to dodge the surface-to-air missiles. All _he_ did was slap cuffs on wrists." Entering the lab, Alex placed the case she was carrying down on one of the tables while Kara fidgeted with a gadget.

"Okay, what's bothering you? And it's not Guardian."

"Who says anything's bothering me?"

"Crinkle." Alex didn't hesitate to tap on the superhero's furrowed brow.

"Crinkle!" Kara gasped, her frown only deepening. "I'm gonna get botox for that... If you can figure out a way to get a needle in my skin, I mean."

"Kara." Alex looked over her shoulder expectantly as she moved to another table.

"I don't know... I just..." Kara sighed as she followed, frustration clear in her voice. "I'm in a funk. I mean, stopping jewel thieves? And that bank robbery last week? It's just... It's easy."

"So?"

"So... So lately, I feel like I'm protecting jewels and money more than I'm protecting people."

"You were a hero tonight, so go home, celebrate," Alex argued. "Want to grab a drink? We could call the guys?"

Kara weighed her options.

Mostly she just wanted to go home and catch up on one of their shows. But she had turned down Alex's last invitation a few days prior and they hadn't gone out as a group in a while. The boys had been surprisingly busy as of late.

She relented. "Yeah, okay. Meet you there in half an hour?"

"That should be good. I'm going to wrap up here so I might be a little late, but for sure no more than 45," Alex said, quickening her movements.

Thinking she'd much rather go home and shower than stay at the DEO, Kara agreed to meet her later at the alien bar they frequented. And knowing she had more then enough time, the Super didn't rush on her flight back to her apartment. But it did take a lot of self control not to fly 4 blocks to the east on the trip and pass by a certain building with a large "L" displayed on its side.

Kara wasn't familiar with the feeling of defeat, but it wasn't like there was much she could do. Lena obviously didn't want anything to do with her. It would do no good to keep showing up at her office just to have Jess turn her away. Or send follow up texts to unanswered ones.

She went through the motions robotically once she got home, finishing her shower quickly and getting dressed. In the end, she decided to walk as it wasn't very far and it was a nice night.

Arriving first, Kara decided to wait at the bar.

"Excuse me? Oh, hi. Could I... Could I just please have a club soda?" Kara asked the man crouching behind the bar as she took a seat on a stool.

"Hey." Quick as a blink, Mon-El hopped up and greeted her.

"Hi," Kara responded, surprised to find him on the other side of the bar. "Do you work here?"

"I do," Mon-El said, resting his forearms on the bar and leaning over to speak over the noise. "Yeah, you know after the, um... Gosh, after the incident, they were a little short-staffed, so I took a job."

"Mm-hm."

"And you know, I like alcohol. I've been known to like alcohol," Mon-El admitted, gesturing around the bar. "So I just really feel like this is gonna be a great job for me."

The blonde nodded her head, adjusting her glasses.

"Well, I'm glad someone's feeling like they fit in somewhere," Kara remarked, resting her chin on top of a fist.

"Was that a sad sound?" Mon-El asked as he poured her drink. "You wanna tell me what's going on? Huh?"

"Mmm..."

"Come on, talk to me," Mon-El encouraged her, pushing her drink forward. "I am a uh-" he threw a rag over his shoulder "-a bartender now."

"I've just been feeling betwixt and between of late," she explained, offering up no further information.

"Betwixt and between?"

"Yes. Nothing major." Kara's face scrunched up after she took a sip of her drink, promptly spitting it back into the cup. "Blah! That's not club soda."

"Yeah, what exactly is club soda?"

* * *

Lena was fuming as she paced in front of Alex. The agent was almost finished getting ready for the rescue mission and wasn't paying her any attention.

It had taken longer then she had liked, but finally she and Winn had figured out how to get the transmat operational as well as how to program it to the right location.

"You think I care what your boss says? I don't answer to him," Lena said, crossing her arms. "I'm going with you."

"Yeah, right," Alex muttered, adjusting her belt.

"I'm serious." Lena stopped pacing and turned to stare at the other woman. "You need someone to open the transmat on the other side once the first portal closes. Yes, we can pre-program it. But, _no_ , I am _not_ going risk something going wrong while I am on this side and of no use to you there."

"Winn is going with us, it's _his_ job. J'onn's not going to let a civilian go out in the field, ever." Alex glared at her, but Lena didn't care.

"Oh! Would you like me to sign a release form? Would that make you all feel better?" Lena asked, exasperated. But the agent only shook her head, double-checking her weapon and her additional ammo. The CEO didn't know why she was pushing so hard; Kara's sister obviously wanted to get her back more than anyone. Still, she pushed further. "You can't bring me into this, take my fix, and expect me to trust you to work it correctly. It's not going to be on me if-"

She stopped abruptly at the thought.

It felt like a lifetime ago since she had last heard Kara's voice. Had seen her smile. All because of Lena's stupid stubbornness. Turning away, she ran a hand through her hair, willing herself to calm down.

"Hey, look. I'm going to get her back." She felt Alex place a tentative hand on her shoulder, making her turn and face her again. "I will. You did everything you could and you have no idea how thankful I am for that... But I can't do my job while I'm worrying about you. I need to get to her, Lena."

"I know." Boy, did she ever.

And with a final squeeze to her shoulder, Alex walked off to the transmat, calling out orders as she went.

**Several Hours Prior...**

_Startled by her office doors opening roughly, Lena jumped at the sudden noise. None other then Agent Danvers stalked in, her secretary hot on her heels._

_"I am so, so sorry, Ms. Luthor. Should I call security?" Poor Jess looked frazzled._

_Alex glared at the shorter woman, as if silently daring her to do so._ _The Danvers sisters appeared to share the same bad habit of bothering Jess; Alex just seemed to care less then Kara._

_"It's fine, Jess, I'll take it from here," Lena said, glancing back at the paperwork in her hands. "Well, I don't see a warrant. I'm assuming there was something you needed, Agent Danvers?"_

_Looking over her shoulder to make sure the door was shut, Alex moved closer to the desk until she stood directly in front of it._

_"I need your help."_

_Lena chuckled at her words. "Twice in two weeks? Can I expect to be put on the DEO's contractor list?"_

_"Supergirl needs your help," Alex amended, placing her hands down on the desk._

_That got her attention, her head snapping up._

_"What happened?" Lena eyed her carefully, a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach beginning to rise._

_"There's no time now. Just, yes or no, will you come with me?"_

_Something had to be horribly wrong with Kara for the DEO to come to her._

_"Where are we going?" she asked, moving up and around her desk to grab her coat._

_"Not far from here; a fake office setup. First things first, is there anything you would need to grab from here that would help with a transmatter portal?"_

_Something was wrong with_ Supergirl _. She had to remind herself of that lest she slip up. "Well - I'd need to know a bit - we can head down to the labs. Could your people call me?"_

_The agent had already pulled out her phone before she had finished her sentence._

_As they left her office, Lena quickly gave instructions to her secretary before grabbing the phone from Alex. "Winn, what are we working with? ... Have you gotten it functioning at all, anything? ... Damn it, hello? Winn? There's no reception," she muttered as she lost the connection in the elevator. Once they entered the labs, and Lena had asked Winn everything she could think of, there was a flurry of movement among the engineers at Lena's instructions._

_"We'll start with this, see how it goes," Lena said, more to herself than Alex, as her workers packaged up what she requested. Calling over one of her security guards that was shadowing her, she told him to get everything down to the cars and meet them at the location of the transmat. "Let's go, I want to get there and get started," she told Alex._

_"I came on my bike." Alex shook her head. "You guys can follow me."_

_"Agent Danvers? Let's go."_

**Present Time...**

After what felt far too long to have only been a quarter of an hour, the transmat turned back on and the portal reopened. Lena felt ten times more nervous with anticipation, not moving any closer then where she stood in the back for fear of getting in the way.

Suddenly, an influx of people poured in at a run; Lena saw a mix of agents that had gone in with Alex and the humans they had gone in after. Just as quickly as they came rushing in, there was a pause while the portal sat undisturbed.

Wringing her hands, Lena stared desperately at the swirling color of purple until finally another figure emerged, followed by Winn. "Come on, come on," she whispered.

There was a longer gap. Then, finally, a blonde teenager emerged, followed by Mike, followed by Alex. Lena felt relief at the sight of the agent - there was no way she would have returned without her sister.

And only a couple beats later could Lena finally feel like she could breathe properly again.

* * *

Supergirl didn't take any chances.

The second she stepped through the transmat back to Earth, she aimed at the control panel with her heat vision to ensure no other aliens could follow them.

Hearing the claps from the DEO agents and human survivors, Kara laughed as she caught Izzy's eye and moved forward to give her a hug. The young teen was the key that allowed them to rescue all the rest of the abductees and shut down Roulette's operation.

"I'm so glad you're okay," the superhero said, stepping back from Izzy to turn and thank her sister. "Hey, thanks for the recharge."

Alex put an arm around her for a half hug. "Yeah, well, it was all this guy's idea." She pointed to J'onn with a smile.

"I couldn't make the trip myself, so I thought I'd send a little sun along," J'onn explained, giving Kara a proper hug. "Welcome home, Supergirl."

"Thanks, J'onn."

A loud sniffing caught all their attention. "Earth smells funny. Always smell like this?" Jo of Slaver's Moon asked.

Glancing around at each other, the group could only laugh at the alien's observation.

As the laughter died down, Alex said, "Where's Luthor?"

Kara was sure her hearing must have been off. But before she could ask, the martian's answer only furthered her confusion.

"She was just here," J'onn answered, glancing around.

"Wait a second, what are you guys talking about?" Kara didn't see the woman in question anywhere.

"Oh you know, just reuniting with my fellow genius to save the day." Winn picked at some non-existent lint on the sleeve of his shirt. "Did Lena really leave? Man, I had wanted to..."

But Kara didn't hear the rest. She let out a long sigh and felt her shoulders sag; any happiness she had enjoyed moments prior already felt far away.

There was a tugging on her arm and she allowed herself to be led away from the group by Alex.

 "Kara, I have to ask. Is something going on with Lena?" Alex asked as they walked out of the large room that housed the transmat and into the office section of the building. "You went from being her number one fan to..."

"Didn't I tell you she would be angry once she realized _Kara Danvers_ was snooping around her mother, taking advantage of her friendship and openness to interviews with a fake story?" Kara asked, feeling herself get agitated. Had it really only been a few hours since she and Mon-El had been in that waiting room, Kara wondered. 

Alex shook her head, arms crossed. "I just don't think it's that."

"Then why do you think she's ignoring me, Alex?" Kara held out her hands in surrender. "Not a moment to spare after she explicitly told her staff to let me in whenever possible?" She felt her face going a little red at the words.

"Well, I didn't know if it was worth mentioning before, but that night I went to her office? Her alien detection device was lying around and she mentioned you. _Human_ you." Alex glanced at the few agents around them and lowered her voice. "Does she know about Supergirl?"

"I didn't tell her _anything,_ " Kara snapped, taking a slow breath. "And I passed that test anyways, so-"

"Look, you didn't see her tonight. How she reacted to Supergirl being in trouble? I mean... It's Lena freaking Luthor, Kara! You don't think she might have put two and two together?"

The blonde stiffened at the thought.

"If she really did consider you a friend, I don't think she would have just stopped caring for you like that. And she wanted to make sure _superhero_ you was okay so badly. I've never seen anyone stand up to J'onn like that. When he said she couldn't come with us to Slaver's Moon-"

"She wanted to _what_?"

"Right?" Alex agreed with her surprise, waving a hand in the air. "I'm not saying we wouldn't have made it to you without her. I know Winn would have came through in the end. But for every second she saved us, I owe her. If something had happened to you before we got there... I just understand now why you trusted her. And I get it that it's bothering the hell out of you that she's avoiding you. But Kara, quitting isn't a part of who you are. So go get her talk - one way or the other." Alex gave her a pointed look, glancing down Supergirl emblem. 

Kara could only give her a terse nod, quickly making her exit. As soon as she got out of the building she took flight.

In times she felt particularly worried for someone, she need only close her eyes and listen for them. Until now, that had only been used for her sister and mother. Did she know Lena so well she could hear her over the two million plus citizens of National City?

That was a scary thought.

She made her decision to fly to L-Corp; Lena very well could have gone back there. She must have sacrificed her whole afternoon and part of her evening to help the DEO and Kara knew she had no problem with late hours at the office. If they were meant to have this conversation tonight, she would see her there. That's what she told herself, anyways.

Unfortunately for her, she saw the office was empty after landing on the balcony. Rubbing her eyes tiredly, Kara turned away from the glass windows and looked out on the city.

She knew when the morning came she would have the perfect report for Snapper. After throwing her next to nothing stories since her "sickness," she couldn't help but eavesdrop when Izzy's mother came in asking for help. And with how he turned her down, there wasn't an ounce of guilt for her doing it.

Supergirl made a real difference tonight. Kara Danvers would as well tomorrow.

And yet, still...

_"Was that a sad sound? You wanna tell me what's going on? Huh?"_

_"Mmm..."_

_"Come on, talk to me. I am a uh, a bartender now."_

_"I've just been feeling betwixt and between of late."_

Leaning over the railing, Kara didn't know what to do with herself. That statement seemed to still ring true even after that night's successes. Playing with the material of her suit's sleeve, she wondered if Alex really was hinting Kara should come clean with Lena. 

Could Lena know the truth, as her sister had suggested? Was the woman so repulsed, perhaps so frightened, by Kara she couldn't bare to be around her anymore? It was all good and well when the alien appeared to save the day. But when that alien is disguised and in your personal space without your knowledge, that was another story.

 _"It's an alien detection device that allows humans to find out who among them is not truly one of them... i_ _f humans want to know which of their fellow citizens aren't actually one of them, then that's their right..._ _"_

This was _exactly_ what Lena was fighting against. And Supergirl had gone the extra mile to deceive her by fooling the device.

Suddenly, Kara saw two black SUVs pull up in front of the building. With no hesitation, x-ray vision revealed Lena sitting in the backseat of the second SUV. Then she heard her voice, clear as day.

_"I'll be just a few minutes, I need to grab some files from my office."_

After a guard opened the car door, Lena emerged and quickly made her way towards the building with him following.

Thoughts of flying away left her mind as quickly as as they entered it. She closed her eyes and followed Lena's footsteps: her heels on the lobby floor, the elevator doors opening, the floor button being pressed. She heard everything.

The Slaver's Moon adventure suddenly felt like a cakewalk. In no time at all, she heard the elevator ding and the doors reopen on the correct floor.

 _"Be right out, Dan_. _"_

With her back still to the office, Kara felt a shiver as she heard her voice again. It sounded so clear it was as if she was standing right next to Lena and not two closed doors away. One of the doors - the one into Lena's office - opened. Kara counted three steps before they stopped and she heard a gasp.

It was her move, Kara decided. Lena would have to meet her halfway for this to work.

After what felt like an eternity, the steps resumed. A lock turned, followed by the balcony door opening, and Kara could finally breathe again when the brunette sidle up next to her.

"I believe I owe you a thank you." Supergirl's voice didn't waver, and Kara was very happy for that. Being around Lena always seemed to bring out both sides of herself.

"You don't need to thank me."

"No?"

"No." Lena's voice was just as firm. "I certainly owe you as much. More, in fact."

"You owe me, huh." Kara repeated, nodding her head. Gathering her thoughts as she leaned against the rails. "What about Kara Danvers?" From the corner of her eye, she saw Lena open and close her mouth a couple times before shaking her head.

"What about Kara Danvers?" came a sharp response.

The superhero's shoulders sagged at the tone. She definitely knew. "Nothing," Kara sighed. "I really appreciate your help tonight, Ms. Luthor. I just wanted to say that." Straightening up, she turned to face Lena and was shocked to find tears rolling down the woman's face, her body slightly trembling. "Lena?"

"Don't." The CEO frowned, her lips trembling as she lifted a hand to wipe her cheeks.

Kara didn't care anymore, carefully placing an arm around Lena's waist, waiting to see if she would push her away.

"I'm _fine_ ," Lena whispered, shaking her head again.

Kara didn't believe her. "Oh, Lena," she whispered back, pulling her in to a hug with both arms before the woman really let herself cry.

* * *

Lena didn't know how much time had passed but they had made it to the couch inside her office. Her elbows resting on her knees, she had mostly stopped crying, reaching up here and there to wipe away any stray tears.

There was a glass of water on the table next to her, sitting untouched.

And Supergirl was kneeling on one knee in front of her, both inside and outside of Lena's space. One of her hands was leaning against the arm of the couch next to where the brunette sat.

With a deep, shaky breath, she finally looked up to worried eyes.

"I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay." The Superhero shrugged a shoulder, seemingly unconcerned about what happened.

"When I moved here, I drew a new line in the sand." Lena tucked a loose hair strand behind her ear, trying to figure out the right way to say it. "All my life, it was filled with so many lies. Both my parents, Lex, they all had their own. I couldn't stand it anymore. I couldn't have anymore relationships revolving around lies... do you understand that?"

The heroine withdrew her hand from the couch, her head dropping down.

It was a half conversation, Lena knew that. She couldn't say Supergirl, she couldn't say Kara. She felt stuck.

But as always, the other woman had a way of surprising her.

"How long have you known?" 

Releasing a shaky breath, Lena asked, "Does it matter?"

"Yes." Kara looked up at that. Lena knew it was Kara as she met her eyes. "I need to know for how long I've been hurting you."

"You didn't owe me _that_ truth, Kara." It was the strangest feeling to use that name, finally. "You had no reason to trust me with it."

"I hated lying to you," the blonde muttered, standing up and walking back over to the windows.

"I'm scared to know the reason why."

"It's not safe for you to know this secret, Lena. You must know that."

"That's the only reason?" Lena asked.

"It's not exactly safe for me, either." Kara crossed her arms and leaned against the glass with her shoulder. "I'm sure more then one enemy, human or alien, would love to get their hands on my family and friends. See how far they could get me to bend at their will."

Lena paused. That couldn't be all there was, could it? "So, you mean to say... this wasn't about keeping tabs on me?" 

"I couldn't care less about your last name, Lena." The CEO had never seen such a hard look from the superhero, leaving know doubt she meant her words.

Biting her lip at the intense gaze, she picked up the glass and took a sip.

"What about me?"

"What about you?" Lena asked, seeing Kara's gaze falter. 

"I'm not exactly- well Kara Danvers isn't what you..." And now, how strange it was to see Supergirl look unsure of herself.

Lena understood why.

"I couldn't care less where you came from, Kara." Placing the glass back down on the table, she stood and decided it would be okay to close the distance. "Do you have any idea what I went through today when I found out what happened to you?"

Kara smiled bashfully, lifting her hands up to her waist. "Yeah, another problem with knowing this little tidbit about me." 

"I can see that." Lena smiled as well, running a hand through her hair. 

"So, I didn't see you when I made it back tonight. Didn't want to wait around and see the fruits of your labor?" Kara asked, eyeing her carefully.

Remembering the moment she saw Kara return safely, Lena felt her heart skip a beat. "I saw you make it back, it was enough to know you were all right," she admitted.

She wasn't the only one with a blush on her cheeks. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know why this chapter was so hard; hopefully it's not all bad.

_Kara doesn't need you texting her_ , Lena thought, not for the first time that morning. Setting her phone down on the desk, she returned her gaze to the computer in front of her. Supergirl was fine and didn't need to be bothered.

Still, Lena couldn't help glancing over to the muted TV hanging on her office wall. The news stations had been discussing Livewire all morning; Leslie Willis had been kidnapped by a scientist in an attempt to steal her powers and create metahuman soldiers. The day had been saved by National City's resident hero, but Livewire was still at large.

Shutting off the TV and picking her phone back up, she weighed her options. It was Kara. Would Kara of all people really get upset at Lena for asking if everything turned out all right? _No_ , _it's too clingy, she has handled much worse than that_ , she decided.

Just as the phone was about to go back down a notification came through.

 **Alex Danvers**  
_Are you busy?_

If it was something serious, surely Agent Danvers would have called. Still, thoughts of Kara's recent adventure on another planet spurred Lena to respond.

 **Lena (9:03):** _I'm in and out of meetings all day. Did you need something?_

 **Alex (9:03):** _Have you gotten around to signing the NDA?_

"What in the..." Why on Earth would Alex be texting her about that?

Yes, she did have all the paperwork signed and sealed and ready to be delivered. Apparently all of the recent interactions with the government agency required Lena to legally keep her mouth shut. That, and what with knowing Supergirl's not so little secret... And so her legal team had spent the week reviewing the documents before she signed anything.

But why should the agent care? Lena had been approached by their HR department and this hardly seemed like it concerned Alex.

 **Lena (9:04):** _Yes, I was going to have them delivered to your office later today._

 **Alex (9:05):** _Don't bother, I'll come get them._

 **Lena (9:05):** _I'll have them waiting for you with my assistant._

Lena didn't care at that point, Alex could do whatever she liked. If she was texting Lena about such a minuscule task a few hours after Supergirl dealt with electrically powered metahumans, everything must be all right.

Putting her phone down and thinking that would be the end of it, she was surprised to notice the screen turn back on minutes later. Taking her time to finish reviewing the page she was on, she sighed as the phone lit up again.

She would never get anything done at this rate.

 **Alex (9:08):** _Are you busy tonight? Would you want to grab a drink?_

 **Alex (9:10):** _Okay, that wasn't meant how it sounded._

 **Alex (9:10):** _I owe you one for coming through for us..._

Lena chuckled as dots that indicated another message was forming appeared. But moments later, Alex must have changed her mind. The dots disappeared and nothing came through.

Shaking her head, she quickly typed out a response. She had to get back to work.

 **Lena (9:12):** _Sure, I'll be in touch this afternoon for timing._

Then, in an afterthought, sent another message.

 **Lena (9:12):** _I would be offended if I didn't know about the police officer._

* * *

Alex had had it.

Ever since she had discovered the boys's extra curricular activities, she knew it wouldn't end well. And now James was off pouting because Kara couldn't accept his alter ego. Winn was a nervous mess after J'onn discovered he had lied about Livewire's location. And Kara was being huffy she couldn't stop the boys from, as she put it, 'getting themselves killed'.

So, Alex was avoiding all of them. And that was how she realized how small her circle of friends was.

When she had overheard Pam from HR complaining that Lena Luthor still hadn't sent over the non-disclosure agreement, she had thought, why not? Mostly, she wanted to get a sense of the woman now that she knew Kara was Supergirl. But also, she had to admit, she had taken a liking to the CEO.

It had been a pretty good evening too. They had went back to the bar Lena owned. The CEO's quick-wit and similar sense of humor to the agent lightened Alex's mood. Her intelligence also made for some interesting conversation. Alex better understood why Kara thought so highly of her.

"Thanks for the ride," Alex said as Lena's driver pulled up to Kara's apartment. "And the save," Alex added, fidgeting with her phone. They had almost run into Maggie who appeared to be on a date, and Lena snuck them out the back of the bar to avoid any awkwardness.

"Thank you for the invite, Alex. It was fun," Lena said. They had decided to drop the titles.

This probably marked the most awkward moment of the whole evening. _What now_ , Alex wondered, _a handshake_? Opening the door, she decided to get a move on and not think too hard. "Well, keep in touch Luthor," she said, grabbing the envelope containing the NDA and hopping out of the car.

"Don't call about the DEO unless you are planning to add me to a contractor's list."

"Right," Alex chuckled.

At the sound of a door banging open, both their attention turned to the apartment building as Mon-El stepped outside. He didn't seem to notice them as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and hurried down the street.

Alex frowned. She knew Mon-El's first time in the field didn't go so well.

"Have a good night," she said to Lena, noticing the other woman was also following Mon-El's path down the street.

After the car pulled away, it didn't take long for Alex to make her way up to Kara's apartment. Her sister didn't look happy when the door opened.

"Hey, everything okay? Why are all the lights off?"

"I just got here a little while ago," Kara responded, moving away from the door to turn on the lights in the living room before crashing on the couch.

Joining her younger sister, Alex said, "So, I saw Mon-El walking out of here sharing the same serious look."

Kara sighed, admitting that Mon-El had told her he liked her while Alex tried to keep her face neutral.

"I'm so shocked." She didn't try hard enough.

"Was it that obvious?" Kara whined.

"Duh."

"Well I don't like him and I had to tell him... But I don't think I did a very good job."

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad," Alex offered, throwing an arm around Kara.

"It was though. It really, really was," Kara said, hand partially hiding her face. "Anyways, how was your night?"

"Pretty good, actually. Went out with Lena for a drink."

"...Oh?" Kara's hand moved to fix her glasses, but they were still sitting on the kitchen island, and for a moment she didn't seem to know what to do with her hand.

Alex pulled her arm away, continuing, "Well, it was okay until we nearly ran into Maggie. And her date."

"Oh..."

"It's fine."

"Alex-"

"It's _fine_. It couldn't be _that_ easy, right?" Alex chuckled. "The first girl I talk to, and what, it's all just going to be happily ever after? No. No. Maggie was right... I don't know what I'm doing."

"Hey!" Kara jerked up, reaching out for Alex's hand. "Maggie was clearly too blind to see what she had in front of her. That's _her_ loss, Alex."

Alex shrugged her shoulders, not really having anything to say.

"Look, we still need to catch up on _The Night Of_. Want to stay over?" her sister tried.

"Sure," she relented. It's not like she had anywhere to be.

"Great! You set it up and I'll get the snacks!" Kara said, standing up and moving over to the kitchen.

Taking time to stretch out her limbs, Alex glanced around to find the remote. It was sitting on the table next to Kara's phone which Alex saw had a notification.

"Kara, Lena text you," Alex said, picking up the remote and turning on the TV.

"She did? What uh- what did she want?"

Picking up the phone, she unlocked it with Kara's password.

"'Glad to see the Girl of Steel can handle a little electricity.' Well, that's one way of putting it," Alex said, putting the phone back down for Kara to answer later. "You know, you were right about her, Kara."

Her younger sister merely smiled.

* * *

A few days after the Livewire incident had passed, Kara invited Winn out for drinks with the promise there would be no mention of Guardian. At the alien bar, M'gann served up the alien equivalent of human beer for Kara, assuring her it was far more manageable then the Aldebaran rum, while Winn stuck to the actual human beer.

"You know, I just gotta say it. Mon-El's suit? Not my best work." The rookie agent was a drink and a half ahead of Kara (who was being far more cautious this time) and clearly buzzed. "Don't get me wrong, it get's the job done. Not much to look at though, is it?" Winn shook his head, now more thinking out loud to himself. "What can I do? Where's the personality? You got Supergirl, a beacon of hope! And Guardian's suit definitely fits the look."

"Vigilante look?" Kara offered, feeling very warm and relaxed. Then remembering her promise, smiled innocently.

Winn either didn't hear or chose not to answer. "He doesn't even have a superhero name, okay? I cannot be held accountable for the lack of creativity, Kara."

"Mhm."

"Wait, Kara, did he hear me? Why's Mon-El looking over here?" Winn turned his back to the bar, lifting a hand to try and cover his mouth from being seen as he talked. "Does he have super hearing?" he said in a loud whisper.

Kara sank a little lower in her seat, knowing it was no use but feeling certain that _she_ was the reason Mon-El had glanced at them. Her first attempt talking to him after he confessed his feelings had resulted in shoving both feet into her mouth. And that was just before Winn had arrived.

"Winn, you were the one that tested his powers!"

"Oh right... no, no super hearing. We're good," Winn remembered, finishing off what was left of his beer. "So, birthday next week. The big 2-6! How come we haven't made any plans?"

Kara shrugged a shoulder. "It's a Tuesday, you guys will be at the DEO." Alex and Winn worked second shift, 3pm to 11pm, depending on alien threat levels. "Assuming nothing comes up and I'm not, I should work on some stuff for Snapper." Her Earth birthday had snuck up this year. It was the first one after she had come out as Supergirl.

"Who cares, we could still celebrate after. And if it's a quiet night, I'm sure J'onn will let us out early... if Alex asks. Hey, where _is_ Alex tonight, anyways?"

"Probably with Lena." She didn't realize she said that out loud until she saw Winn's surprise.

"Really?"

"Well, no. I don't know where she is," Kara said. She hated to admit it, but lately it seemed like a little green monster was walking around her when she thought of them together. It was her turn to whisper as though someone might hear. "Don't you think it's a little weird that all of a sudden they are so close?"

"Alex and Lena are close?" Winn asked, clearly knowing nothing.

"Never mind."

"No. You can't just say something like that and then, _never mind_ ," he mimicked in a high pitched voice.

"I sound nothing like that."

"I thought Lena was your friend."

"She- she _is_ my friend." Kara caught M'gann's eye, gesturing for another round. "She is such a good person, Winn. I mean, if Lex Luthor is night, that woman is day. Lena is sweet and kind and so, so, smart and-" _Where did all of that come from_ , she wondered, stopping abruptly.

"Uhh Kara...?"

"Yes?"

He paused as M'gann appeared with two fresh drinks. After taking a long sip, he said, "You don't... you know..." He wasn't making much sense, but he must of thought he was, continuing, "'Cause remember, you told me, you told me you weren't gay. Remember, Kara?"

An adjustment of her glasses. "I'm not."

"Right. But, Kara. _Kara_ ," Winn rambled on, "You don't _like_ like Lena, do you?"

"...Nooooo."

"Oh my God! You _like_ like Lena!"

"Winn, shut up." Kara glanced around at his words, whipping back around to glare at him.

" _You totally do_ ," Winn said in a whisper yell. Then, reverting back to a normal voice, he added smartly, "And you lied by omission, Kara. Rude. I know what the B stands for, okay?"

"Wh- What B?" Kara sputtered.

"B for bisexual. GBL... TGLB... Okay, I can't really remember it all right now, but you know what I mean."

"Oh, Rao."

"Look, I totally got your back. I just don't know why you felt like you had to hide it from me," her best friend frowned.

"Oh you are one to talk about hiding things, Winslow Schott, Jr."

"Said you wouldn't mention that."

"I'm never drinking again."

"Hey, you know what they say: liquor goes in, truth comes out," he explained. "Don't worry, I will totally wingman it up for you! We all know Lena is a firm L, so no problem there, and single."

"A firm _what_?"

" _Lesbian_ , Kara, _lesbian_."

"How did _you_ know she was a lesbian? And how do you know she is single?" Kara rushed out quickly, grabbing her phone and pulling up google.

"Eh, she came out years ago, I remember she got outed in college I think..."

He continued talking but Kara's attention was focused on her phone, scrolling through article after article on the Luthor family, Lex's trial, LuthorCorp's transition to L-Corp, Lena's achievements in the field. "Winn, I can't find anything!"

"Give me that," he said, snatching her phone. Kara glared at him as he typed in it before handing it back. "Here." All he had done was add 'lesbian' after Kara had searched for 'Lena Luthor' to get the desired results. "She probably had her team SEO her online profile to push down _those_ results."

Kara's eyebrows raised as she now scrolled through gossip articles speculating on Lena's dating life. One from a year prior revealed her walking hand in hand with a beautiful blonde Kara didn't recognize but according to the article was someone important in Europe. "All right..." she said uneasily, shutting off the screen and taking a long sip of her drink.

"Kara! Text her and invite her to your birthday!"

"No!" Kara felt herself blushing, picturing Lena with the blonde.

"Yes, ask her what she is doing that night! We can have dinner at your place. Maybe a game night, riiight?"

"No, no way! I'm not going to bother Lena now. And what does she care about my birthday?"

Winn eyed her carefully before lunging for her phone.

* * *

The Danvers sisters appeared to have their wires crossed. At least, in regards to Lena's night. Kara had texted not to come over; something had come up at the DEO and they wouldn't be able to make dinner. Not two hours later, Alex had texted to ask if she was still available, and, if it wasn't too late, to still stop by Kara's apartment; she and Winn couldn't make it but the heroine would soon be home.

Reading in between the lines, Lena knew older sister didn't want younger sister alone on her birthday. It made her ache to think of Lex and how she would never have someone care for her like that again.

But for the first time in a long time, the ache didn't seem so bad. Maybe because she actually had _friends_ texting her about _plans._  That hadn't happened in a long time, either. And so there she was, sitting on the hard, dirty floor outside of Kara's apartment, holding a box of cupcakes while anxiously glancing down the hallway for the blonde.

About 15 minutes after she had arrived, Lena jumped at the door suddenly opening. 

"Lena?" Kara was clearly surprised as she offered a hand and gently pulled Lena up to her feet. "Didn't you get my text? How long have you been waiting?" She was wearing a pair of gray sweat pants and a casual sweater that had 'Power to the Girls' written across it. She also wasn't wearing her glasses, which caught Lena off guard. 

"Not long, actually. I did get your text, but then Alex text me as well," she said, trying not to look too impressed at the ease of which she was pulled on her feet. "She felt bad your night didn't go so well," Lena added, wiping at the back of her pants and attempting to remove the wrinkles from her clothes. "You weren't in there this whole time, were you?"

"No, I just..." Kara made a swooping motion with her hand and nodded her head towards her apartment. 

 _Of course,_ Lena thought with a chuckle. "I hope you don't mind dropping by. Couldn't have you ending your birthday all alone."

"Come in, please," Kara smiled bashfully. "But you really didn't have to, Lena. It's already late."

For Lena, whose alarm was set for 5:30 am, it was late. If she was home, she would be getting ready for bed. But at that moment, it couldn't be further from her mind.

And the next hour passed very quickly. Kara talked to her about the adventures at the DEO, explaining the attack and Alex and Winn's need of long, long showers to get the stink of alien webbing off of them. While Lena was surprised at Kara's sudden openness, she would have signed a hundred NDAs if it meant they could talk like this with complete openness and honesty.

Having lost herself staring, Lena was suddenly aware the other woman was expecting her to speak. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?" It really threw her off seeing Kara without glasses on.

"Is there something on my face?" Kara asked, clearly feeling self-conscious as she made sure her hair was tucked behind her ear.

"No, it's just so strange seeing you like this," Lena admitted, biting her lip.

"Like what?"

"In the middle, between the two personas," she tried to explain, feeling around for the right words. "I don't think I've ever seen you without glasses on. Unless they are swapped for a cape, of course."

"Want me to put them on?" Kara laughed, getting up and moving into her bedroom.

"No, you don't have to do that!" Lena yelled out after her.

"Well, it's either that or the cape, and I don't like sitting with it on," Kara said, walking back in with the glasses on. "It get's in the way."

"Did you start wearing them prior to becoming Supergirl? Change your job so no one would recognize you?" Lena asked as the heroine sat back down next to her.

"You think this was planned?" Kara asked, a twinkle in her eye. 

"Wasn't it?"

"No. No, not all." Kara shook her head, staring down at her lap. "My adoptive father actually designed these for me when I arrived here. The frames are lined with lead to suppress my powers, making things a little easier. Not that- I mean, I totally have them under control now, but in the beginning it was a little hard."

Lena nodded her head, mentally tipping her hat to Jeremiah Danvers. "Would you mind if I...?"

"Here." Kara quickly took the glasses back off and handed them to her.

"You have no idea how long I was kicking myself. You're eyes alone should have given it away," Lena said as she looked over the glasses, now more aware of how important they were. "Are your sure these don't have a slight shade to the lenses? Maybe they alter the color of your eyes a bit?" she asked, staring through the lenses as close as she would dare without putting them on.

Kara smiled, answering that they weren't as Lena handed the glasses back.

Up until then, Lena had held back on prying into the heroine's story, but her curiosity was growing more and more. She decided to press her luck. "So, if this wasn't planned, how did it come about?" 

When she didn't get a response, she thought she made the wrong choice. Just as she was about to take it back, Kara spoke up. "I was sent to Earth to protect my cousin."

Now, just because Lena wasn't living in National City when Supergirl first started saving the world, it didn't mean she hadn't followed her journey. CatCo magazine provided that better then anyone else. "Not to keep you safe?" Lena asked gently, remembering the first interview Supergirl did with Cat Grant. 

"Good memory. It _did_ keep me safe, but that wasn't the primary reason. Couldn't give away all my secrets, could I?" She explained all about Krypton's destruction and how she ended up in a region in space where time didn't pass. By the time she made it to Earth, Kal-El, who was apparently Clark Kent (that made a lot of sense, Lena realized), had already revealed himself and didn't need protection. When she talked about her situation with the Danvers, her emotions wavered a bit. "I decided the best thing I could do is fit in. After all, Earth didn't need another hero."

"Until you rescued the plane," Lena interjected.

"Alex was on that plane. But to be honest with you, I'm sure I would have made the same decision anyways," Kara said, holding Lena's gaze intently. 

"I know you would have." Lena replied quietly, feeling her heart skip at the look in Kara's eyes. Somewhere along their conversation, they must have moved closer together on the couch. "So, you had your first taste for the hero business. Was it everything you thought it would be?"

"Oh, golly. Everything and more," Kara looked off at the memory. "It was tough at first. Alex and I started having problems."

"Really?" Lena was surprised at that.

"Yeah, I didn't even know she worked for the DEO up until then. She and the agents on that flight were why it was targeted." Kara further explained the complications of Fort Rozz and her aunt. Her emotions really got the best of her at that point, and Lena couldn't stop herself from reaching out and holding her hand. 

When Kara squeezed her hand, she felt relieved to know she hadn't overstepped her bounds. 

Eventually, Kara finished her stories for the night and they fell into a comfortable silence. Lena, still holding Kara's hand, was drawing invisible figures on the back of it with her free hand. She wasn't much for crossing into other people's personal space, especially when she didn't know them for very long, but with Kara it came so easy. She wished their night had started earlier so they could have more time together, but it was time to leave.

"I should call my driver," Lena said, her hands going still.

Checking the time, Kara also appeared to not have realized how late it was. "Oh, wow. I'm sorry! Here I am talking your ear off-"

"Kara, you're fine," Lena said, not needing any apology. She wanted nothing more then to stay. "I'm just so lazy; it's going to be hard getting up. And then the drive back... I really should look into those transmatter portals. _They_ would bring in a fortune."

"Well if you would like, I could get you home pretty quickly," Kara offered, looking a bit nervous as well. "Definitely save you some time on the commute."

"You mean..." Lena imitated the swooping motion Kara made earlier, making the heroine laugh and nod her head. "I'm not sure, Kara. Truthfully, I hate flying. I know statistically it's the safest way to travel, but still..." She said her usual explanation, feeling her heart speed up at the thought. "Can't help feeling scared."

"You know, the night the plane was going to crash, it had been so long since I had done it that I had forgotten how it felt. I was scared," Kara said, shaking her head with a smile. "But, good scared, like that moment right before-"

Lena waited for her to continue, but instead the other woman remained silent. "Like that moment right before...?"

"Nothing, it's silly," Kara waved her off. 

"Tell me."

Kara had a faint blush gracing her cheeks, but to her credit, finished the thought. "Like that moment right before you kiss someone for the first time." 

Lena was silent for a moment, taking in the words. Then she began to laugh, resting her forehead against Kara's shoulder. "I'm not laughing at  _you_ ," she promised, hearing Kara groan.

"Then what are you laughing _at_?"

"I'm sorry, Kara, "Lena apologized, lifting her head back up. "It's just been so long since I've felt  _that_ feeling, and with nothing in sight for the near future... You know what? Fly me home, please." The night was too good to be true, anyways. It might be all a dream as far as she knew. Why not try it out?

Kara checked to see if she was serious before agreeing. "One second," Kara said, standing up and letting go of Lena's hand. She was gone for only a few seconds before returning back as Supergirl. "Ready?"

"Sure?"

She wasn't so sure. After putting on her shoes and coat, she ran her fingers through her hair nervously as the superhero looked outside. Lena wondered what a predicament they would be in if someone caught Supergirl flying Lena Luthor out of Kara Danvers apartment. 

"Come here," Supergirl motioned her over, opening the windows wide.

"Okay..." 

"Relax, Ms. Luthor. I am proud to report a grand total of 0 fatalities have occurred when flying Air Supergirl. So far, anyways."

"Ha, ha." Before she knew it, she was being held bridal style just inside the open windows. "Woah, woah!"

"We haven't gone anywhere yet!"

"I can see that, Kara," Lena muttered, holding tight around the heroine's shoulders. Butterflies were currently occupying her stomach.

"Lena," Kara whispered, getting Lena to look at her. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you, okay? Do you trust me?"

The only thing she wasn't trusting was her voice, so Lena nodded her head, holding on even tighter as she felt Kara tense up before taking off. 

As they headed out her eyes were closed, face tucked into the crook of Kara's neck. She nearly forgot her address when asked for directions and only then did she relent and open her eyes so as not to look a complete coward. It couldn't have been more then a minute or two before they had arrived, and Lena was sure it only took that long because Kara didn't want to scare her by going too fast.

"Lena, I'm going to have to land in front of the building. Unless you make it a habit of leaving your balcony doors unlocked?" Kara said, hovering in made air 75 stories above the ground.

"That's fine," Lena agreed, feeling far more safer in Kara's on arms then on any plane she had ever been on. She did avoid looking down and kept her attention on Kara instead, hair fluttering in the wind, concentrated look on her face and all.  _How much more beautiful can you get_ , she wondered. 

"Well actually, let me do this," Kara thought aloud, slowly moving down to land in the alley opposite of the street.

Finally reaching the ground, Lena's legs felt shaky as if she had just gotten off a roller coaster. There was no chance of falling, however, as Kara made no move to let her go. 

"Feeling all right?" Kara whispered into her ear.

Her heart was jumping in her throat, feeling nervous for new reasons. For better reasons. 

"I'm fine, thank you," she said, pulling back to be able to look at Kara properly.  _How did I not notice those eyes_ , she thought desperately. 

"Um... good... that's good. No problem," Kara replied, nodding her head. Lena could have sworn she felt the hands around her waist twitch. That Kara had started to lean in even closer. But in the end, Kara pulled away, letting Lena's hands drop down. "Let me just..." She disappeared and reappeared just as she had done in the apartment, reversing her look back to Kara Danvers. "This might be better for your doorman," Kara laughed nervously, pushing up her glasses before stuffing her hands in her pockets.

_Right. Home. 12:30 in the morning._

"Good thinking," Lena agreed, holding on to the taller woman's forearm and allowed herself to be led out of the alley. 

"Thanks again for tonight," Kara said, ducking her head. "And the cupcakes."

Lena immediately noticed the switch from superhero to normal human and felt more sure it was through Kara's subconscious. "It was my pleasure, Kara. I'm glad you liked them."

"We're all going to catch up on the weekend, actually go out for my birthday. You should, uh, you should definitely come. If you aren't too busy, that is."

Lena smiled, feeling a warmth spread across her chest. "Yes, let me know when. I'd love to."

They continued walking in silence, the main street mostly empty. Once they had reached the door to Lena's building, it was the CEO's turn to do the thanking.

"Thank you for  _walking_ me home. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," Lena admitted. She couldn't tell if she actually liked it or was just more so enjoying the feeling of being in Kara's arms.

"Any time," Kara smiled, shrugging a shoulder.

 _One last thing_ , she decided, wishing Kara a good night before giving her a long hug and placing a lingering kiss on her cheek. 

"Happy birthday."


	7. Chapter 7

As they spent more time together, Kara realized it might be wise to pull back on the Supergirl visits to Lena. . . . After Alex pointed it out, that is. With Lillian Luthor's trial beginning, media scrutiny had risen around L-Corp's CEO once again and she did not need to deal with added speculation of a certain Superhero's  _consistent_ visits - visits to her condo, no less. 

So with dessert in hand, it was Kara Danvers who made her way into Lena's office. 

"Everyone in National City has got an opinion about me," Lena said with a sad smile, leaning back against her desk. "Ungrateful daughter, heroine, _bitch_."

"Ugh." Kara rolled her eyes at the thought. 

"And they've all called for a quote. Not you though, right, Snapper Carr hasn't sent you here to shake me down?"

"No, no. I'm here as a friend," Kara assured her, holding up a white takeout bag in her hand. "I thought you could use some fried sugary goodness in your life. You eat donuts, right?"

"Um, well..." Lena pretended to contemplate that as she straightened up and closed the distance to grab the bag. "I am human," she confirmed, smirking at the blonde. "Thank you, Kara."

 _A flirty smirk_ , Kara wondered, giggling at the joke as she followed Lena to the couch.

Winn, the ever faithful best friend, had been encouraging her more and more at every opportunity. And while she was trying not to get her hopes up too much, it was nice that someone else knew about her feelings. Better than bottling them up inside.

"So, was it awful?" she asked, reminding herself to stay on task. 

"It actually felt good to testify. I got to say my piece and finally distance myself from the Luthor name. . . . And then I came back here to 12 calls from her lawyers." Seeing Kara grimace, she continued, "Yeah, she wants to see me."

"What do you think she wants?" Kara asked, grabbing a donut and taking a bite while Lena carefully picked at her own. 

"Probably to tell me that my outfit in court was horrible and that I need a makeover," Lena scoffed, the sad smile returning at the suggestion. "I don't know and I don't care. I just thought I was done with her, you know. . . . I'd finally shut the door on being a Luthor. And then there she was, back on my phone sheet."

"Twelve times." Seeing the sadness so evident on Lena, Kara lost her appetite.

"You don't think I should feel guilty for not wanting to go see that monster, right?"

"Well, do you think you would find peace of mind by visiting her and telling her how you really feel?" 

"Even if I did, it wouldn't make a difference. She's been the same way since the day I met her."

Kara sighed as her own parents crossed her mind. "I've spent most of my life wishing I could talk to people that are no longer here," she said, adjusting her glasses. "She's still here. And she's still your mom."

"Yeah." 

After a beat, Kara asked, "Are you going to keep going to the trial?"

Lena nodded her head. "I put her there, I have to see this through." 

Kara tried to hide her smile, pretending to clean her lips on the back of her hand, but Lena easily caught her.

" _What_?"

"It's nothing."

"So then tell me," Lena laughed, grabbing Kara's forearm and shaking it lightly.

Kara blushed. How could she say no? 

"Just that . . . if everyone got to see just a fraction of what I see, Lena, there would never be a question of where you stand."

"You flatter me," Lena said, staring down at her lap. 

"It's the truth," Kara pushed. "I believe in you."

And she was rewarded with a gently squeeze on her arm and the most beautiful smile.

* * *

As a Kryptonite-powered cyborg, the assassin-for-hire John Corben was as much the DEO's problem as he was the CIA's. As such, Alex was tasked with his trial. And while she'd much rather be out in the field, it helped that Kara was there reporting for CatCo. Lena too, for obvious reasons. 

"After Lillian Luthor saved you, did she order you to work for Cadmus?" the state's attorney questioned Corben, who had taken the stand.

"She didn't have to order me to do anything. I believe aliens should be wiped from the Earth. Starting with Supergirl and her cousin."

Alex couldn't help leaning over to her sister who was sitting to her right, whispering, "I hate him."

"He literally has no heart," Kara responded, frowning at Corben.

"And what, if anything, did Lillian Luthor tell you about the Medusa Project?" 

"Earth is in crisis." It seemed he was in no mood to answer questions. "Aliens threaten our safety and way of life, bringing violence and disease. She wanted to save the human race."

Sitting to the left of her, Alex could see Lena subtlety shaking her head.

"That's enough, thank you."

"It is not enough! Lillian Luthor is not a criminal. She wanted to save you until Supergirl silenced her. _This_ trial is a conspiracy to condemn the one person who wants to save your lives. Your _children's_ lives!"

The courtroom filled with noise at his words, those watching clearly effected by his views one way or the other. 

"Order!" The judge banged the gavel down repeatedly. "Settle down. We must have order in the courtroom. Counselor. Get control over your witness."

"Mr. Corben has become antagonistic and clearly is not willing to answer the questions as directed. Permission to treat the witness as hostile, Your Honor."

Seeing Corben slowly stand up, Alex tensed.

"Allow me to treat you as hostile," he scowled, easily breaking his cuffs in one motion and blasting a Kryptonite beam into the courtroom from his heart. 

Metallo was back.

"Move!" Alex yelled, pushing Lena down and towards the side of the room behind one of the large columns.

Screams filled the courtroom as everyone made a mad dash to get out of the way. 

"Lena?" Kara yelled out, taking cover behind the banister of the prosecutor's desk a few feet away. 

"I got her!" Alex called back. With the CEO behind her, she drew her gun and kept her eyes out on Metallo.

Officer after officer went down and with no one left to stop him he easily freed Lillian Luthor from her handcuffs, the two of them hurrying out together.

Alex could see the worry in Kara's eyes as she looked towards Lena, but there was no time for discussion. "Go," she urged her sister. And with one last glance, Kara ran out of the room. "Where is your security team?" Alex asked as she offered Lena a hand, pulling her up to her feet.

"Waiting outside somewhere. One was in the lobby but . . . "

"We'll find them," Alex said, leading Lena as they made their way out of the empty courtroom. "Stay right behind me."

There was chaos in the lobby as a large crowd pushed it's way out. _The whole building must have been evacuated_ , Alex thought. It made the agent nervous being stuck between all those people and anyone _unfriendly_ who might spot Lena, but before too long, they finally got outside.

"There!" Lena yelled out over the noise, pointing to her security team's SUVs further down and across the street. Alex could see two of the guards were trying to spot the CEO through the mess of people. "Oh my God!"

Looking back at Lena, she begin to ask, "Wha - ?" Following Lena's eyes, she saw a large, yellow construction tower careening wildly, knocking Supergirl clear through a building before swinging back and detaching above the hundreds of people in the street. 

Just as it started to free fall, Supergirl was back and gently lowering it down to the ground.

"She's fine, come on," Alex urged Lena forward, waving at the guards to get their attention. Once they neared the cars and the guards spotted them, Alex yelled out, "Get her out of here."

"Alex?" Lena yelled angrily, holding out a hand at the guard trying to lead her into the back of the car.

"It's not safe for you here," Alex shook her head. "I'll be in touch when I can."

Little did she know she wouldn't have a chance to.

* * *

Things moved quickly, and before they knew what was happening, intelligence had come through that the NCPD had arrested Lena Luthor with evidence that  _she_ was the one who provided Metallo the kryptonite heart. 

To say Kara was tense would be an understatement. And James wasn't helping.

"Metallo's strong, but something's off. His Kryptonite isn't right. I think it's hurting him," James explained as Alex tended to his shoulder.

"Well, you're lucky you didn't take a direct hit," the DEO agent told him, gently cleaning the wound he suffered from Metallo.

"Very lucky," Kara agreed firmly, inspecting the damage before moving away.

"I had my shield. I love that shield," James smiled at the thought, and seeing Kara's scowl, added, "And I know what I'm doing, Kara."

"Even if Metallo's weakening, though, he still is a fanatic follower of Lillian Luthor. We have to find out where he's taken Lena and help her."

"What is it going to take for you to realize that Lena is a criminal?" James asked. "She's not the victim. She got the kryptonite. He broke her out of prison."

With each point he raised, Kara shook her head, feeling herself get angrier. "Lena's not a member of Cadmus! She's _not_!" she exclaimed, looking around at J'onn and Winn for help. Seeing their skepticism spurred her on. "She stopped the gang with alien weapons. She saved Alex's life when Corben tried to kill her," she said, pointing at her sister who was being far too quiet.

"She shot Corben and then her crazy mom turned Corben into Metallo," James countered. "So, that could have been the plan the entire time."

"We have to start treating Lena Luthor like a hostile," J'onn said, turning to face Kara. "The evidence is too overwhelming."

With a sigh, Kara turned to her last hope. "Winn? If you watch that video, I know you'll find something."

"I did," Winn said helplessly, motioning with a hand at his laptop. "It's- It's clean."

"Then find something to prove her innocent," Kara pressed him with a pleading look.

"Everything we've seen so far says the exact opposite," J'onn said, not giving Winn a chance to respond.

"Well, she's my friend. And I believe in her." Not wanting to hear anymore argument, Kara turned around and walked out, getting as far as the bridge outside the medbay before pausing to try to calm down.

She had been patrolling the city looking for Lillian and Metallo when the police had arrested Lena. 

Alex and her had gotten into a screaming match to keep 'Supergirl' from tearing into the prison. Snapper was currently painting the CEO's face on the cover of CatCo so, once again, everyone would think Lena was guilty. And they had no leads.

Every negative feeling she could have in that moment, she did have. 

"Hey," Alex said, appearing next to her, "feel like a little sparring?" 

Trust her sister to know when she wanted to talk and when she wanted to fight. Nodding her head, they quietly made their way downstairs to the kryptonite designed training room.

It didn't take long for them to realize there wouldn't be much fighting. Kara had a hundred percent aggression but zero percent concentration. Time and time again her sister caught her and she would tire out, the kryptonite doing its job.

"Kara," Alex said, holding out her hands to stop her as she tried to get back up and go again, "I think that's enough."

"I'm fine."

" _Clearly,_ " Alex said with a note of sarcasm, moving off the raised platform and turning down the kryptonite. "It's funny, you know, I asked this question before but . . . well I guess I just wasn't paying enough attention then, right?" 

Frowning at her sister who still had her back to her, Kara wondered what she could have been talking about.

"What's going on with Lena, Kara. The truth this time," Alex said, turning back and looking up at Kara who was still on the platform. 

The jig was up. "Nothing," Kara whispered, shrugging her shoulders. "Nothing then, and nothing now."

"But you want there to be, don't you?"

She nodded her head in agreement, but she couldn't look Alex in the eye.

"Why didn't you just tell me this?" Alex asked, confusion written all over her face.

Letting out a bitter laugh, Kara asked, "When, Alex? After I apologized for creating an environment where  _you_  didn't feel like you could talk to me?" Kara reasoned, jumping off the platform and moving closer. "That I was going to make more of an effort to pay attention to you and what you are going through? Hey, let me just go ahead and one up you on coming out!"

"You don't think _this_ maybe could have helped a little? Maybe it would have been a pretty _valid_ thing to bring up?"

"It's not - I'm not explaining this right." Kara shook her head, pacing back and forth a bit. "Look, ever since I came to Earth, it was all about fitting in. Nothing but fitting in. And I do like guys, so I wasn't faking anything, just to be clear. But I mean, Alex, how many girls did we even know in high school who were out? One? Two, max? With college,  there was always a guy - the numbers for available girls who would be interested, pretty slim in comparison." Alex couldn't help but laugh at that, shaking her head amusedly. "I know I could have been open about it years ago, but there really hasn't been a girl that I've actually been interested in and who _was_ into girls."

"Until Lena?" Alex smirked.

"Yeah, well," Kara confirmed it nervously, pulling at the sleeve of her suit. The reality of the situation coming back to the front of her mind, she turned serious. "I can't let anything happen to her."

"We'll get her, Kara." 

"No, I mean, I feel like I'm going to be  _sick_. I thought it was just a crush. I didn't realize . . ."

"How much you liked her?" Alex finished for her.

"Yeah."

* * *

_"Haven't you ever heard the phrase, 'A watched pot never...' Oh. Whoa, wait a second, I might be simmering."_

_"What is it?"_

_"Okay, so I hacked into L-Corp CCTV to get a copy of the raw video footage of Lena taking the kryptonite. But, ha! It looks like somebody already hacked into this system a couple of days ago. I know this code. This is the same code the real Hank Henshaw used the day he broke into L-Corp to take the isotope._ _Okay, okay, if the video was corrupted by Henshaw's cyborg signature, then I can reverse that signature and decrypt it and separate the raw video file from the corrupted one. And . . . ha!"_

_"Lena didn't do it."_

_"You were right . . . you were right!"_

...

_"Whoa, whoa. If these numbers are right, then it's not just unstable, it's going to blow."_

_"Blow?"_

_"Like, go nuclear."  
_

_"Have you finished repairing the anti-kryptonite vest Supergirl wore the last time she fought Metallo?"_

_"They're in pieces, I would have to rebuild - "_

_"No, there's no time. I have to go now, or Lena's dead."_

...

_"Kara, we calculated the rate of radioactive decay. It's faster than we thought."_

_"How fast?"_

_"Minutes. I mean, its half-life is decreasing exponentially."_

_"When the Kryptonite explodes, it's gonna send out a radioactive cloud of kryptonite gas. If you are anywhere near it, it'll kill you."_

_"Then I'll make sure I'm not there when it goes off."_

...

_"Supergirl, you're just in time. I've been wondering if these worked."_

_"Don't hurt her!"_

_"Sorry, she's gotta pay for what her cousin did to your brother."_

...

_"Listen to me, the more Metallo uses the synthetic kryptonite, the faster it's decaying."_

_"Get out of there! Now!"_

...

" _Get Lena, let's go!_ "

...

_"Kara, please!"_

_"Supergirl, get out of there now!"_  
  
...

* * *

Before opening her eyes, the first thing she noticed was a pounding headache. Then was the fact that she most definitely was not in her own bed.

" . . . satellite feed from the mountain showed a helicopter before the explosion . . . "

" . . . Lillian and Henshaw got away . . . "

Quiet voices drifted in and out from somewhere nearby.

" . . . and Lena . . . "

She recognized that voice easily.

" . . . the tests all came back clean, Kara . . . "

With a groan, she lifted a hand up to the side of her head.

"Lena?" This time Kara's voice was a lot clearer.

Slowly opening her eyes and blinking at the brightness, Lena saw the superhero at her bedside, staring down with a worried expression.

"Kara? Where- where am I?" 

Alex was at the doorway dimming the lights - to which she was eternally grateful for - before coming to the other side of her bed and answering her question.

"At the DEO medbay. What was the last thing you remember?" Alex asked, staring up at the monitors next to Lena's bed and typing on a keyboard.

"Uhh," she tried to think. Looking back at Kara who was gripping the railing of her bed, different memories flashed in her mind. "I remember Metallo came to break me out of the prison. Guardian was waiting for him and they fought, but, well. . . . Then we met with my mother and Corben drove us to one of Lex's facilities outside the city. It wasn't long before Supergirl showed up." Finally, Kara's face relaxed a bit. "I can't really remember after that."

"It was barely a couple minutes later when Henshaw threw her to the ground and she hit head," Kara finished for Alex.

"That's good then that your memories are so intact. The tests were clean, Lena, you should be fine," Alex assured her, pushing away from the keyboard.

That was the good news, but what of the bad, Lena wondered.

"What happened with my mother?" 

"She and Henshaw made it out of there, but no signs of them," Kara explained. "The kryptonite Metallo had was unstable, it blew just before we got out ourselves."

"Which leads us to wonder if we need to worry about another kidnapping," Alex said.

"Maybe not anytime soon. She needed me for a biometric lock and I think they got what they wanted," Lena remembered. That too came back to her, that she was a Luthor after all. 

Her head hurt even worse.

"Biometric scan at a Lex Luthor facility?" Alex frowned. "I would think only Luthor DNA would be able to open that."

"And you would be correct; even Lillian couldn't open it. Lex must not have made an exception for marrying into the family," then adding, "or being adopted."  _Please don't make me say it_ , she thought. "She told me at the prison when I visited her." 

"It doesn't change anything," Kara said quietly.

What she wouldn't give to throw her arms around Kara at that moment and relish in her warmth. Instead she cleared her throat, asking Alex, "So, I can leave?" She felt dirty and wanted nothing more than a shower.

"Well, you could still have a concussion - symptoms sometimes show up later. It might be best to monitor you through the night." 

"I'll take an aspirin and call my doctor tomorrow, if anything," Lena said, wincing as she pushed the bedsheets off of herself. "I can't stay here." 

Kara gave her a hand, pulling the sheets completely off while appearing to communicate telepathically with Alex. The sisters were trying to figure something out.

"I'll go with her for the night and make sure everything is okay," Kara decided.

"You don't have to do that, Kara," Lena said, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"I want to."

"There is a matter of the debriefing . . . " Alex trailed off.

Once again, it seemed like Kara sent a message without saying a word.

"Okay, tomorrow,  _relax_."

Giving the blonde a grateful look, she held on to her offered arm as they made their way out. Kara and Alex spoke quietly but Lena paid them no mind, she was too busy taking in the DEO's impressive facilities. Finally they reached a balcony and the DEO agent said her goodbyes. Strangely, she sent Kara a wink before saying to Lena, "glad you made it out in one piece, Luthor," and offering to have dinner soon.

"Sure," Lena agreed as Alex left them. "What are we- oh." It suddenly made sense why they were on the balcony. 

"Think you'll be all right flying? Promise to go slow! Or I can totally change and we can take a DEO car?" Kara rambled quickly.

It was an easy enough decision. "Take me home, please, Supergirl," she requested, holding out her arms.

With a smile, Kara easily lifted her up in her arms. "Hold on."

Lena felt the "good scared" Kara had mentioned before about flying, like a first kiss. A skip of a heart beat, flutters in her stomach, but she never felt safer. It also turned out the DEO's building wasn't very far from her building.

Unfortunately for her, a problem was waiting for them outside.

"You really should consider getting a balcony door that can be unlocked from the outside," Kara said as she hovered them in place, looking down at the mess of reporters on the street below.

It didn't matter how late it was, Lena Luthor was front page news. 

"It will be on this week's agenda," Lena said tiredly. "How did they even know?"

"The police chief had to make a statement on the explosion. The good news is, they know you had nothing to do with any of it."

 _Great_ , Lena thought. "I'm not going through that," she decided, racking her brain for options. No phone to call the building's security to be let in through the back, no wallet to pay for a hotel.

"You could stay at my place for the night. If you- if you want, that is," Kara said rather nonchalantly.

It did sound a lot better then her last option: the couch in her office at L-Corp.

"Are you sure you wouldn't mind, Kara? I wouldn't want to impose."

"Pshh, not at all," Kara said, already flying towards her place. A little further out of the way her neighborhood was quiet for the night, leaving no nosy eyes to search for the CEO. 

Lena hardly felt the touch down as Kara landed inside her apartment, relaxing at the site of a familiar place that only held good memories. The uncovered windows brought in light from outside, allowing them to see some.

It suddenly occurred to her Kara had made no move to let her down.

"Everything okay?" she asked, not being able to help herself from tucking a loose strand of hair behind Kara's ear.

"Yeah," Kara sighed, "just don't go anywhere yet," she said, gently letting Lena down but keeping her arms wrapped tightly around her waist in a hug. 

Lena laughed at her action but held on just as tight.

"I've been wanting to do that all day," Kara confessed. "You have no idea how worried I was."

Finally pulling back to properly see Kara, Lena said, "I don't know how to thank you." Even with the room so dark, the blue in Kara's eyes easily captured her. "You, Kara Zor-El, are my hero."

Kara chuckled, looking quite bashful. "Well, that's what I'm here for."

"I mean it. I've never had friends like you before. Come to think of it, I've never had family like you. No one has ever stood up for me like you." 

A flicker of something passed in Kara's eyes at her words, her jaw clenching as she finally let go of Lena and took a step back. "Well, now you have someone that will stand up for you. Always."

Lena watched her fidget with her hands and knew if it had been another setting with Kara Danvers, her glasses would have been adjusted many times over.

"What's wrong?" Lena asked with a frown. "I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable, or . . . "

"No! No, it's not that," Kara said, moving away to turn on the lights. "Do you want to take a shower? I'll grab you some clean towels." And then Kara disappeared through her bedroom into the bathroom. Seconds later, she reappeared and quickly moved to a dresser, pulling out a t-shirt and shorts. "Will these work? Do you need anything else? I can grab you some sweatpants if that would be better?"

"No, this is great, Kara. Thank you," Lena said, grabbing the offered clothing and making her way to the bathroom.

"Cool, I'll wait for you out here . . . "

 _Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea coming here_ , Lena thought, if Kara's reaction was anything to go off of. Clearly she had said too much.

Showering quickly, Lena had every intention of asking Kara to take her home. That if it wouldn't be too much trouble, they could call the building ahead of time so she could speak with someone about letting her in through the damn roof if that was her only option.

She was towel drying her hair when walked out into the living room. "Kara, I appreciate the offer, really, but I think it would be better if I just go home."

Kara herself hadn't changed out of her suit, leading Lena to believe it was just what she had been hoping for Lena to say.

The superhero paused, briefly taking in Lena before looking away, her face going slightly red. "Oh- if that's what you want . . . " 

Lena hated this. It was like a wall had come up between them and she didn't know why. She was tired and feeling like shit and didn't have a care for what she would say.

"It's  _not_. But I can't help feeling like you don't want me here right now," she explained.

Kara bowed her head, her hands resting on her hips as she shifted her weight from foot to foot.

"I  _do_ want you here."

"Kara," Lena snapped, getting the other woman to look at her instead of the ground, raising an eyebrow expectedly for an answer.

"Okay, okay," Kara relented, running a hand through her hair. "If I'm being completely honest . . . what you said about me being your friend before? See, uh . . ." she chuckled, giving Lena a tentative smiled. "Sorry, I don't like being vulnerable."

The CEO didn't know what to expect, but she felt very nervous.  _I know, psycho brother and mother taking aim at you and your cousin is a little hard to over look_ , she thought,  _time and time again you have to put yourself on the line for me_ ,  _another Luthor_. 

_I'm so not worth it._

"Lena?" 

If Kara had spoken again, she hadn't heard a word. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?" Lena asked with a shaky breath, bringing a hand up to the lump on her head. 

The headache wasn't getting any better.

"You're heart is going a mile a minute," Kara said, moving closer with a look of concern. "Are you okay?"

"Can you just please tell me whatever it is you need to tell me?" Lena asked, holding up the hand that was holding the towel.

Letting out a long sigh, Kara nodded her head. "I don't know how else to say it. I just- I really like you Lena. As in, more than a friend way."

She was in a coma. Or she was still asleep and this was a dream. Alternate dimension?

"I beg your pardon?"

"Look, the last thing I want to do is make you feel weird and lose our friendship. I get it. You're youand I'm me. You can have _anyone_ . . . "

In what world should Kara Danvers ever feel like she wasn't good enough for her, Lena wondered incredulously.  _Definitely an alternate dimension_.

" . . . quite frankly, who wouldn't like you. But I should be honest, and- and I'll get over it, so . . . I just can't lose you. It was the worst feeling today when . . . "

At some point down the road, she would realize it might have been better if she had actually tried to pay attention and enjoy Kara's speech. She would blame it on the headache.

And then it registered what Kara had said:  _I'll get over it_.

She didn't notice the towel falling on the ground.

"Kara," Lena interrupted her rambling, closing the last two steps so they stood a mere foot away from each other. "First of all, I don't know how you could think  _you_  could never be good enough for  _me_. It's the other way around, my dear."

The blonde looked like she was going to interrupt so Lena moved quicker, one hand resting on Kara's shoulder, the other on her mouth to not allow her to speak.

"Second of all, the  _only one_  I'm interested in, is standing right in front of me," she finished, taking her hand off Kara's lips to rest on her other shoulder.

Kara appeared speechless, her hands laying frozen at her sides, as she just stared into Lena's eyes. Slowly, Lena felt her shoulders relax. Then her arms half jerked up before coming to hesitantly hold her waist.

"Umm, since when?" Kara smiled in disbelief.

"Well, I could ask you the same question," Lena said, smiling back. "Instead, there is something I've been wanting to put to a test."

Kara gave her a confused look, but her the smile remained all the same. "What?"

"Hmm," Lena hummed, her gaze going down to Kara's lips. Looking back up, she could see a spark had appeared in Kara's eyes. 

Without another word, she closed the distance and kissed her best friend firmly on the lips, relishing it for a moment, before pulling back. Her eyes still closed, she explained, "You were right. _Good_ _scared_." 

Kara could only laugh as she picked Lena up and spun her around. Holding her up in her arms, this time she was the one to initiate another kiss. Then another. They didn't go further then a couple more closed mouth kisses, but Lena melted at the softness of Kara's lips.

All of a sudden, their attention was pulled away to a brightly lit portal ( _what in the world_?) of some sort that had appeared and was growing in the middle of the apartment.

"Oh no," Kara sighed, lowering Lena down but making no move to let go of her, "Please not  _now_ ," she whined under her breath.

Once the portal became as large as a doorway, a masked man in a red suit with a lightning bolt on his chest stepped through.

"Hi, Kara. Bad time?" he grimaced, the portal closing shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alex *did* cover Lena in the Luthor's episode during the trial scene, just saying.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try really really hard to finish this. Hold me responsible if I go too long without an update. The crossover was just what I needed. 
> 
> Also, this storyline with Mon-El is seriously making me want to stop watching Supergirl.

Lillian Luthor and Hank Henshaw’s escape could wait another day. For their part, the team had  done all they could and it was nearing midnight when they were finally dismissed. 

Alex had stayed later to shower at the DEO so nothing would stand in the way of going straight to bed when she was finally home. While she herself hadn’t been in the field, the mental state she had gone through with Kara almost getting caught in the Kryptonite explosion had left her exhausted. 

Desperately craving sleep, she couldn’t help the disappointed sigh when Supergirl appeared with Barry Allen in tow seconds before she would have exited the building. Just like that, a long day would turn into a long night. 

“We have to help them, Alex,” Kara had pleaded as they walked to J’onn’s office. A big problem had come up directly resulting from the Dominators invasion on Earth One.

Barry had tried to explain it as well as he could have as quickly as he could have.

“First we got the call from Felicity, a friend of ours and, uh, colleague, in Star City,” he had started, telling them how Oliver, Thea, and Dig were all exhibiting sudden mysterious symptoms. Migraines, nausea, and muscle weakness were a few among other issues. “Mostly it added up to neurological issues and CT scans _did_ show slight swelling in the brain for all them.”

Bottom line, the Arrow team couldn’t figure out what was the cause of it all and why all three were suffering from the issues.

“We couldn’t figure it out either . . . until we got the call from Professor Stein. The seizures had started right around then.”

Kara, having already been filled in before the two had arrived, took over then. “Sara and Ray were having the exact same problems. That was everyone who had been abducted by the Dominators,” she had explained with a frown.

“We are nowhere near as equipped as you guys are to handle this,” the speedster sighed. “Please help my friends before it’s too late.”

J’onn was hesitant at first but Alex raised the point of all the information they could learn that would be very useful should their Earth ever have to interact with the Dominators. Plus, the dream induced world the heroes had been subjected to by the Dominators was eerily similar to the effects of a Black Mercy. Clearly their minds where messed with in a very dangerous way. How could they not help?

When the portal was finally opened, Alex no longer felt any tiredness at the sight of their new visitors. The Arrow team had come through first with Barry having to carry the short haired brunette while Kara and J’onn supported the two men with her. The exhaustion and pain was very evident on the three as they were led into the waiting beds.

“None of them have been able to get much sleep since this all started,” Barry explained, clearly feeling troubled. “Also, there’s something you guys should know about Sara. 

*     *     *

Kara moved around her loft quieter than a burglar, leaving her cape and boots in the living room to be sure she wouldn’t startle Lena. She had been gone for only about a couple hours at the DEO but it felt much longer then that.

After turning on just one of the lamps to fill the space with a gentle glow, she made her way towards where the CEO was sleeping and kneeled down next to the bed. Resting her forearms on the mattress, she paused for a moment to listen to a steady heartbeat before gently whispering Lena’s name. 

Alex had told her to leave her alone, that Lena would be _fine_ , but still she just had to make sure.

“Lena,” she tried again. “Wake up for a minute, please?”

“Hmm, whyy?” Lena groaned, not bothering to open her eyes.

Kara smiled at that, carefully brushing back the few hair strands covering Lena’s face. Instead of answering her question, something caught Kara’s eye she had never noticed before.

“How many ear piercings do you _have_?”

“Several,” the brunette chuckled. Becoming more awake, she finally opened her eyes and turned towards Kara. “Is everything all right?”

You were supposed to make sure people with head injuries would wake up throughout the night, right? “Now that I know you are conscious, yes,” Kara answered.

Lena smiled, grabbing ahold of Kara’s hand resting on the bed near her. “Worried about me?” she teased. Having just woken up, her voice was extra alluring to the heroine. 

“A little,” Kara admitted. “How are you feeling?” 

“Tired, but fine.” Lena sighed, lifting her other hand and feeling around where she had hit hear head for any bumps. “And you? What happened with your friends?”

“I don’t know,” Kara said, squeezing the CEO’s hand. “They didn’t look very good, but I know Alex will figure it out.”

“Anything I can help with?”

“I’ll let you know.” Kara couldn’t help but yawn. “ Or, Alex will.”

“Sleep,” Lena suggested, squeezing Kara’s hand back.

“They might need me back at the DEO any minute.”

“So rest, lay down. I promise I won’t bite.” Lena smirked. “Come on, at least be comfortable. It will take you all of two seconds to change if you need to fly over there.”

To this Kara relented, letting the other woman’s hand go and using her super speed to disappear and reappear in a pair of shorts and t-shirt not so different to what she had loaned Lena. “Less than two seconds, for the record,” Kara smiled, moving to turn off the light.

“ _That_ was impressive,” Lena blinked, shuffling backwards to make room. “Must be nice.”

“It has it’s benefits.” Kara shrugged a shoulder, tentatively climbing into the bed. It had been a long day, but she felt more restless than ever. Maybe it would have been better if she had just stayed at the DEO. She could have gone to Clark for help. She could have gone to Eliza. She could have been _useful_.

And Lena was probably annoyed with being woken up in the middle of the night but was too nice to say anything. Now she might not get back to sleep. And Kara could tell with her heartbeat, with her breathing. 

The heroine frowned, trying not to fidget as all these thoughts raced through her mind.

“Kara?” Lena’s voice broke through them.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for checking on me,” Lena said. And while it was hardly noticeable, Kara could tell she had moved the slightest bit closer to the center of the bed. “I know you’d rather be helping your friends right now, but it really means a lot to me that you're here.”

And then Kara might have moved a little closer to the center of the bed.

“You don’t need to thank me for that.” Kara replied. _I’m exactly where I need to be_.  

*     *     *

Sara Lance was having a very _very_ bad week. And with a past like hers, she would know. 

It had all started with a never-ending migraine. Being sensitive to light and sound, she was unable to train or do anything else remotely fun. Then came the nausea with dizzy spells that made her spend a lot of quality time praying to the porcelain gods. That was even _less_ fun. 

Jokes were made about pregnancies. Someone might have gotten a nasty bruise on his shin for it.

The teeny-tiniest comfort was knowing she wasn’t alone as misery truly does love company. Ray was suffering with identical problems (same joke was cracked) and since Gideon didn’t detect anything wrong with them, everyone simply assumed the two had caught a bug and they were left to suffer quarantined in their rooms. 

Well, until a day later when a mission in 1927 Chicago came up. A mission in which the Atom and White Canary certainly had no intention of sitting it out. But when they were caught without their suits for any protection by Al Capone and his tommy gun wielding gang, Ray and Sara were in big trouble.

Their focus was off. They were two steps behind in their normal actions. The alleyway was spinning and the gunshots might as well have sounded like explosions with their pounding headaches. 

Ray had been lucky as Nate had been in the perfect place to cover him. Sara wasn’t.

Slowly opening her eyes, the blonde struggled to remember all the details of the fight. Looking around the room she found herself in, she became certain of two things. One, she definitely wasn’t on the Waverider. And two, the technology was far too advanced for 1927. 

“Ohh we are so not in Chicago anymore . . . ”

Groaning as she sat up, she became aware of a burning in her right shoulder. It was wrapped and her arm was in a sling. On her left arm she saw was hooked up to monitors and an IV bag.

 _That won’t do_ , she thought, easily taking off the clip on her finger that monitored her heart before moving onto the IV. Beeping on the monitors began once the clip was removed, startling her. 

From the corner of her eye she saw movement outside the room through the windows that made up one of the walls. It spurred her to move as quickly as her her body would allow her, ripping out the IV from her arm and tearing off it’s long tube from the bag. By the time the door opened, Sara was out of bed and in fight mood.

“Creative,” the woman noted, seeing the IV tube wrapped around Sara’s closed fist on her good arm, the needle poking out between her knuckles. “But you won’t need that.”

“Where am I?” Sara demanded, knees bent and ready to move. The ever present pounding in her head was still there, and her shoulder was burning worse, but it didn’t matter. Pain was just a friend after the life she had lived and she sure as hell wasn’t going down without a fight.

“Earth 38. At least that’s what Barry Allen called it. He came here for help from Supergirl.”

“Supergirl?” The room had started to spin worse. Why wouldn’t her head stop pounding?

“Yes. Barry brought you and your friends here to see if we could figure out —”

“Who else is here?”

The woman patiently listed off Ray, Dig, Oliver, and Thea, and explained that they moved her to her own room to take care of her shoulder. Apparently she had been shot. 

_At least it was only once this time._

“Look,” the woman frowned, drawing closer a couple steps only to move right back and raise her hands higher as Sara tensed up.

It was then that Sara noticed a man outside watching them carefully through the window. She had no doubt they would be having more company at the first wrong move.

“You’re bleeding again,” the woman pointed out, eyeing Sara’s shoulder. “I need to check the stitches and change your bandages.”

 _Yeah_ , _right_ , Sara thought sarcastically. Instead, she asked, “Where are my friends?”

The woman looked towards the man outside and nodded her head, no doubt telling him she was fine.

“Barry left right after you all got here. Between the five of you, I’m sure he has a lot to cover for back home,” she explained. “You’re friends are in a room right down the hall. You want to talk to them? That’s fine. Just let me help you first.”

Sara still wasn’t so sure. The woman must have noticed it on her face and sighed.

“The fact of the matter is, I can do it with you handcuffed to the bed, or I can do it with you as a free woman. It’s your choice,” she said, a challenge evident in her voice. Clearly she was feeling less patient.

“Yeah? You and what army?” A little hospital security with a bum shoulder? She had faced much worse odds.

“I don’t think I’ll be needing one.”

 _Hello_ , Sara couldn’t help a smirk. “Oh?”

“Well you are my sister’s friend, so I’d rather not have to. But . . .” She left the sentence open, staring at Sara expectantly. 

At the mention of a sister, something clicked. 

*     *     *

 _Why is it so bright_?

For the second time in a row, Lena woke up in a bed that wasn’t her own which in it of itself was more than a little annoying. However, any discomfort she felt was immediately alleviated once she opened her eyes. As was customary, the curtains to Kara’s loft had been left open (not that it mattered as they were all see through anyways) and she could see day was breaking over National city.

Groaning, Lena had every intention of turning over away from the windows and falling right back asleep. Halfway through the motion, she found herself faced with a welcomed issue.

Evidently, at some point in the night, she had made herself comfortable smack dab in the middle of the bed and that left poor Kara hanging on the edge of her side. Kara, who was still laying down on her stomach while facing Lena, had her arm wrapped around the brunette’s stomach perhaps in an attempt not to be the only one to go down if she got completely pushed off the bed.

Unable to help a giggle, Lena held onto the blonde’s bicep and attempted to pull her closer to the center so she would be more comfortable.

“Kara, come here,” she whispered, struggling to move her at all. Instead, Kara pulled her more firmly into her side and rested her cheek against Lena’s shoulder.

Her heart skipping a beat at the motion, Lena took a shaky breath as she held more tightly to the arm around her. Her heartbeat didn't have a chance to settle as Kara shifted again shifted a leg so that her calf rested on top of Lena’s. 

Taking in the moment, the brunette rested her own head against the top of Kara’s and absentmindedly ran a hand up and down the arm holding her. She didn’t know how long they stayed like that before Kara shifted _again_ , clearly intent on torturing Lena, though this time it was clear she too was waking up. 

Lifting her head up to investigate, the confusion on Kara’s face quickly shifted to one of happiness. “Hi,” she smiled shyly. Then more so taking in how she was holding onto Lena, she quickly moved to let her go and shift back. “Oh, I’m so sorry! I did—”

“Kara!” Lena laughed, holding on tighter to Kara’s arm with both hands when it was clear what was about to happen.

“Woah!” The Super managed to land on her feet while her upper body mostly remained on the bed.

“Nice save,” Lena smiled, letting Kara go and finally free to shift back. 

“Says the bed hog,” Kara muttered moving to sit on the bed. “How’s your head feeling?” 

Lena shrugged, laying back on her side of the bed and facing Kara. “Not as bad as before,” she admitted, playing with the blanket covering her waist. 

Kara nodded her head. “You should get some more sleep.”

“Mhm,” Lena easily agreed as a yawn came on. “I take it Alex never called?”

“Alex?” Kara tilted her head, then jerked up as she appeared to remember the other events of the night. “Oh crap!” Reaching over to her nightstand, she picked up her phone and unlocked it. “I can’t believe I didn’t wake up.”

Seeing the worry in Kara’s eyes, Lena sat back up and shifted closer. “Did she call?” she asked, glancing down at the phone. 

“No, she just sent a text a couple hours ago saying I might have to go get Eliza . . . They are running tests. I’d better head over there.”

“Please keep me updated,” Lena requested before she remembered she didn’t have a phone. In fact, she didn’t have anything on her. “Or _not_.”

Dropping her phone back to the table, Kara turned to more fully face Lena.

“Don’t worry about any of that, I’ll stop by L-Corp and talk to Jess.” Sunlight had peaked into the room and Kara’s eyes contained what was easily the most beautiful shade of blue Lena had ever seen. “Just get some rest.”

It was such a foreign thing to be told what to do in a way that she knew the other person had _Lena’s_ best interests at heart. She felt a familiar flutter in her stomach that sprang up only around Kara.

“Okay,” she nodded her head, slightly biting down on her lower lip which Kara’s eyes were immediately drawn to. She released it with a smirk, raising an eyebrow in question.

Kara glanced away, her face slightly red. With no glasses to play with, she instead tucked her hair back behind her ear before turning back to face Lena.

“So uh, you and me,” she started with a giggle, pointing in between them nervously. Shaking her head, she continued, “Um, there was something happening between us before Barry showed up . . . and I really, _really_ , want to get back to that.” Kara Danvers was all giggles now.

“I do, too,” Lena admitted easily, now it being her turn to glance down at Kara’s lips. 

“But first, I have to make sure this situation with my friends is take care of.”

“Of course.”

“And then . . . ”

“And then?”

“Well uh, I was hoping, if you’d like to, we could go out . . . On a date, that is.”

Lena hummed happily, taking her time as she stared into Kara’s hopeful eyes. “I’d love to,” she whispered, and then kissed the blonde on the cheek. “Now go check on your friends.”

“Okay,” Kara smiled, though she made no move to leave.

 _That_ couldn’t have made Lena any happier. “Go,” she urged Kara, laughing at her goofy smile.

“Yeah,” Kara agreed again, this time shaking her head before finally getting up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did it bother anyone else during the crossover that while Chyler Leigh and Caity Lotz are the same height, Alex was constantly towering over Sara? No? Guess it was just me...
> 
> Also, is there any lovely artists out there who could draw bed hog Lena?


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is what I imagine Lena's place would look like for you to reference:  
> https://streeteasy.com/sale/1290018

“Look, all I’m saying is you're food sucks and I’d like some fresh air. Okay?”

“No.”

“Come on, just for a couple hours. . . I know you must be hungry, too.”

“ _No_.”

Two days had passed since Sara and her friends had arrived on Supergirl’s Earth and the DEO was still no closer to figuring out how to help them. Their health was more or less the same with short pockets of time in which they felt well enough to move about. 

“Really, Alex, are you going to make sneak out of here behind your back?” Sara said, looking down at the agent from where she sat on the lab table.

"Is that what you think is going to happen?" 

“Well, I _am_  basically a ninja, so.” 

“Basically a one-armed ninja,” the agent muttered under her breath.

Taking offense at the implication, Sara sat up straighter. “It will match the .38 scar on my left shoulder; nothing to cry over.” In truth, she was not looking forward to the long rehab that she faced, but that was the least of her worries now. “Look if I’m knocking on death’s door, you could at least let me live a little while I’m feeling up for it.”

“You’re not going to die,” Alex said, her tone firm as she leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. “Kara is on her way to get mom and we’re going to figure this out.”

“Woah there Danvers, I think that’s a bit premature," Sara said, faking seriousness.

"Why?" Alex frowned, not yet knowing the blonde well enough to recognize when she was playing around.

"I’m just trying to do dinner and drinks first, who said anything about meeting the parents?" Sara teased, a smirk playing on her lips.

“Wha— it’s not. . . she’s a bio-engineer, she’s going to _help_ us,” Alex huffed, rolling her eyes.

“Uh huh.” Sara smiled in victory at the other woman's flush. The one highlight of Earth 38 was the game they had going: her flirting blatantly while Alex attempted to sidestep it. “What are you working on anyways?” Sara asked, scratching under the wrappings of her injured shoulder with her good hand. 

“Just. . . going around in circles,” Alex admitted, looking frustrated. “Is there anything else you can remember from the tech they used on you guys?”

“Nope. Just a bunch of creepy pods they had us laying in and attached to up here,” Sara explained, pointing on her head where the cables had been attached to. “Hello perfect world."

“Hm, and what was that?” Alex asked, looking up at Sara curiously.

"For me?" It was Sara’s turn turn to glance away. “My sister was alive."

Alex was clearly caught off guard at that, shaking her head and looking down. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know.” 

“How could you,” Sara said, waving it off. 

“Kara went through something like that. In that case it was an alien parasite, but it involved her in a coma with a fantasy where Krypton was never destroyed and her parents alive,” Alex explained, a far off look on her face. “We used some virtual tech so I could reach her and I had to break her heart all over again for her to reject it and come back to us. I'm sorry you had to go through that.”

“Yeah, I’d definitely take a nightmare that’s real over a dream that’s a lie.” Feeling restless, Sara hopped off the table and rolled her head back and forth with a grimace at the stretch in her neck. Deciding she might as well keep moving while she felt good enough, she said, “I’ll let you get back to it, Danvers.”

Barely making it to the door, Alex called out to stop her.

“Fine. . . one hour. I pick where we go and we leave when I say. Deal?”

_Yes indeed_.

*       *       *

“Sara, drink some water,” Alex tried, looking down at the blonde in concern. They had arrived back from dinner a few hours prior and the Legend’s health had fallen again. Eliza was working through all the medical notes and Alex had decided she might as well stay. Never mind this would have made it two nights in a row she had stayed at the DEO. 

“No,” the blonde mumbled, eyes closed.

“Why not?”

Sara merely groaned in response. 

Alex sighed as she sat down carefully on the side of Sara’s bed, full cup of water in her hands. While this wasn’t at all part of her job description (and there were actual medical personal checking on everyone), she couldn’t help but stay close.

She tried not to linger over the fact that it was specific to Sara and not the rest of her friends. 

“Ughh, torture would be a step up from this,” Sara said, her head lolling to the side Alex sat.

“Don’t be so dramatic, Lance,” Alex said teasingly, surprised at the sudden urge to reach out to the ailing woman. In that moment, she was very happy her career had never taken a true medical route. This was far too much emotion to deal with and she much preferred punching bad guys and throwing them in cells.

“How dare you.” Sara finally opened her eyes, glaring at Alex. The half smile let the brunette know she wasn’t all that mad.

“Drink a little, can’t have you getting dehydrated on us,” Alex tried again, holding out the cup. “Look, you don’t even have to lift a finger,” she added, bringing the cup up Sara’s lips. The other woman finally relented, drinking a bit.

“Hm, happy?”

“Ecstatic,” Alex drawled, eyeing the cup in between her hands. She felt a knee nudge her in the back, making her look back up at Sara.

“Don’t stress yourself so much, Alex.” 

“Who’s stressed?”

“Seriously, you’ve been here non-stop. I don’t think the overtime is worth it.”

Alex let out a genuine laugh at that, standing up to stretch. “Don’t you worry about me. The water was my last task for the night.”

“Alex—”

“I’m leaving, I’m—”

“Al—”

It was the second seizure Sara suffered since arriving.

*       *       *

_“Is everything all right?”_ Lena immediately asked as she answered the call.

Alex smiled ruefully at that; she couldn't really blame the woman as it was an odd hour to call. “Take it easy Luthor, just wondering if you wanted to grab some breakfast.” The agent shivered, walking briskly away from the DEO. 

_“Alex, it’s not even 6am,”_ came the muffled reply.

“Isn’t this the usual start time to your day?”

_“Not on a Saturday!”_

“I’m buying.”

_“Is everything all right?”_ Lena tried again, but with a gentler tone. _“Kara said she was going to pick up your mother last night to help out with your_ visitors. _”_

“Jeez, what didn’t Kara tell you?”

_“I signed the NDA, what do you care? And it doesn’t help when The Blur or The Flash or whatever he goes by crosses dimensions in front of me.”_

“Of course he did,” Alex groaned.

After a bit more back and forth, Lena texted her address to the agent but made it clear she had zero energy to go out. Alex didn’t really care so long as she didn’t have to go home - that would make her feel absolutely useless. Luckily Lena's place wasn't far and she elected to do the 10 minute walk, if nothing else, to clear her mind.

The building’s entrance had a doorman who greeted her, opening the door to an extravagant lobby with marble walls mixed with rich wood. The suited man behind the desk quickly signed her in and after calling up to _Ms. Luthor_ to notify her her guest had arrived, directed Alex to the right elevator bank.

_Of course_ Lena lived in a building with private elevators that opened into her condo. 

“Where you raised in a barn?” Lena asked in lieu of a greeting, holding out an arm to prevent Alex from passing the entryway. “Shoes.”

“Ex-cuuuse me,” Alex muttered as she leaned down and unlaced her boots, dropping them on a waiting shoe rack before being led into the home.

“Woah.” The open space that held the living room, dining room, and kitchen basically could hold all of Alex’s loft. And, okay, maybe in seeing it she understood why Lena wouldn’t shoes walking around on her clean hard wood floors and spotless rugs. “Was the penthouse not available?” Alex teased.

“Please, Alex, this is not a buyer’s market. I know I overpaid for this place,” Lena groaned as she sat down on one of the couches, Alex joining her on the opposite end. “And what on Earth would I do with all that space?”

Alex took in the other woman. Something seemed off, early wakeup call aside. “What’s going on with you?” she asked.

“What?” Lena snapped, burrowing under her blanket. 

“Umm. . .” Alex eyed her wearily. It was weird seeing a casual Lena. And she had never been this moody before.

“Fine,” Lena relented with a sigh. “Don’t tell Kara—”

“Oh, boy."

“Turns out that concussion you said I might still get?”

“Mhm.”

“I got it.”

“Of course,” Alex chuckled. 

“And Kara will just worry, and she doesn't need that now. It's getting better. I can actually stand the light today,” Lena said, waving around the room.

The sad part was, most of the blinds were drawn, light only sneaking in around the corners. Alex felt sympathy for the other woman, knowing the feeling. 

“And how would Kara not all ready know?” 

“Well, she’s been busy with you guys, and I haven’t been in the office.” Lena fidgeted.

Oh, _right._ There was a conversation to be had there.

But she did crash Lena’s morning, basically inviting herself over, it could wait. Instead of commenting, Alex closed her eyes and leaned back against the couch.

“If you wanted to come over to sleep, the guest bedroom is made up,” Lena offered after they sat in silence for a bit.

“I don’t know what I want,” Alex laughed lightly, her mind briefly going back to Sara. She'd restitched the blonde's shoulder after the seizure had stopped and Sara had been passed out during the whole process. In fact, she hadn't woken up all night. Shaking her head, Alex leaned forward and rested her arms on top of her knees.

“If we are going to have that type of conversation, I will need coffee,” Lena said, eyeing Alex carefully. “What’s going on at the DEO.”

Alex sighed. “Nothing. I mean, not for a lack of trying. But we aren’t getting anywhere.”

_“You need a break, sweetie,”_ Eliza had said that morning, in that gentle way only a mom could. Then Kara had joined in and any hope of staying and working was lost when J’onn had appeared. 

“I’ll make the coffee,” Lena decided, getting up and moving to the kitchen. And by making the coffee, she meant merely turning on a machine and placing the coffee mugs on the waiting try. 

Five minutes later, Alex was drinking one of the best cups of coffee she had ever had. Naturally.

“So, walk me through it,” Lena requested, tucked into a ball and sipping on her own coffee.

Alex did, walking the case through from beginning to end and explaining what the other worldly heroes were dealing with. The whole situation had been making Alex extremely frustrated but in talking with Lena, she felt more at ease. 

“That’s rough,” Lena frowned, taking in all the information.

“Yeah,” Alex agreed, drinking the last of her coffee.

“And the brain swelling hasn’t gone down at all?” Lena wondered.

“No, but again, it’s just minor cases. We got them on IVs to keep their blood pressure from dropping; some oxygen therapy,” Alex explained, rubbing at the back of her neck. “Not that it’s a good thing the swelling still hasn't gone away. It’s obviously _not_ a good thing.”

“Well, it’s a shame you can’t just reboot their brains,” Lena remarked, placing her own coffee mug down on the table.

“What do you mean?”

“You know, if your computer is acting up, sometimes you can just restart it and it works out the kinks. It sounds like once they had disconnected from the alien tech their minds started malfunctioning,” Lena explained, shifting on the couch to make herself more comfortable. “And maybe there was a process they had to go through for it to have been safe disconnecting. Like with an external hard drive.”

*       *       *

"How are you feeling?"

"Like a million bucks, Kara," Sara attempted a smile, but that took up more strength then she had. If how she felt was any indiction, she knew they had reached desperate times. And the plan they had come up with certainly supported that theory. “So, who's bright idea was this?"

"Well, Lena actually gave Alex the idea," Kara smiled proudly, fidgeting with the blanket on Sara's bed.

"Who's Lena?"

"Kara's girlfriend," Alex answered as she entered the room, causing Kara to sputter.

“Supergirl, have you been holding out on me?” Sara laughed, taking in the blushing superhero. “After all the advice I gave you? Not cool.”

“What advice?” Alex smirked.

"One, she is not my girlfriend. _Not yet_ , anyways. Stick around and I'll tell you all about it, okay Sara?" Kara said, first addressing Sara, then turning to Alex, "Two, worry about your patients. Time's wasting, Alex."

Having been (surprisingly) told, Sara and Alex shared an impressed look.

"So, medically induced coma?” Sara asked.

“Something like that,” Alex replied, concern evident in her eyes as she shared a look with Kara. “Do you remember the alien parasite I told you about that affected Kara like you guys?” 

It wasn’t that easy to remember anything with her pounding headache, but she nodded her head anyways.

“No you don’t, and that’s okay,” Alex smiled. “We need to, in a sense, shut down your brains to give them time to heal properly. We don't know how exactly it happened, but the swelling indicates clear trauma taken because of that alien tech. Now, the parasite that attacked Kara affects the exact same area of the brain. That's why we were are going to use it in combination with other drugs to induce the coma."

In Sara’s mind, it sort of did made sense, but she knew it wasn't without a great risk. 

“And this Lena, is she a doctor?” 

"She's a genius" was Kara's response while Alex shook her head, answering with a "no."

"Great!"

“Mom and I worked out how to do it using the living samples we preserved of the parasite; we went over it with the medical team and everyone's confident," Alex said, shifting from foot to foot.

"There is no one better at this, Sara. If they think it will work, it will," Kara piped up.

"So, what are we waiting for?" the Legend asked, looking forward to some peace however she could get it.

"Ah, you're consent," Alex admitted. 

"Seriously?"

"Just doing what I'm told."

"Consent given." 

"Sign this, please?" Alex smirked, holding out the clipboard she had been holding.

"So," Sara started as she tried to hold on to the clipboard and sit up at the same time. Seeing her struggle, Alex immediately moved in to help her. "Thanks. About our second date."

"Our  _second_ date?"

"I'm- I'm going to check on the others," Kara called over her shoulder as she zipped out of the room. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LOL at me making up medical stuff. Obviously a couple Sara quotes from Legends where I thought they fit.


End file.
